In this blog, Roman pottery specialist Elizabeth Johnson explains the assessment process and what she has been finding following the archaeological excavation work undertaken by University of Leicester Archaeological Services (ULAS) for the Leicester Cathedral Revealed project.
During the excavations at Leicester Cathedral, a total of 5,540 sherds of Roman pottery were recovered dating from the beginning of Roman Leicester during the 1st century, through to the 4th century and the end of the Roman town. The pottery has all been assessed to determine how it can contribute to our understanding of what was happening at the site during the Roman period, and how its use changed through later periods of time.
Image 1. Elizabeth Johnson examines Roman pottery from Leicester Cathedral. Image: ULAS
Firstly, the sherds from each context were separated into broad fabric types, such as grey ware, white ware, colour-coated ware, mortaria, amphorae etc, and quantified by counting and weighing the sherds of each fabric type. Each sherd was then more closely examined to look for traces of decoration and to determine the vessel form (the shape, for example jar, bowl, dish, cup) where possible. Evidence for burning, sooting or surface abrasion was also noted. This gives us information about what types of vessels were being used, how they were used and where they were made.
Another important element of the pottery assessment is dating the material. By looking at the range of fabric types, forms and decorative styles together, we can provide a "spot date" for each context, which helps the Excavation Director construct the stratigraphic phasing for the site. The "spot date" is generally based on the latest datable pottery in the context, and is given as a range of time within which the material could date, for example early to mid-2nd century.
The assessment has revealed a wide range of pottery was being used in Roman Leicester, including imported samian fine wares. Samian was imported from Gaul (modern France) during the 1st and 2nd centuries up until the early part of the 3rd century, and provided Roman Britain with a range of bowls, dishes and cups for use as table wares. Most of the samian ware from the Cathedral dates to the 2nd century, including these decorated bowls and plain ware cup. The central medallion with the gryphon compares to the work of a known potter Cinnamus, and dates to c.AD 140-160.
Image 2. Sherds of decorated samian ware bowls. Image: ULAS
Image 3. Part of a plain ware samian cup. Image: ULAS
As well as lots of jars, bowls, flagons and drinking beakers we would expect to find on a Roman site in Leicester, there have been some unusual vessels including the rim from a dolium/seria and a Gaulish mortarium. Dolia/seria are huge storage vessels, so large they are often buried in the ground for support. This example is made in soft pink-grogged ware, which comes from the Milton Keynes/Buckinghamshire area and dates to the 3rd or 4th century. Dolia/seria are very rare in Leicester, so it is exciting to find one at the Cathedral!
Image 4. Examples of Roman pottery from Leicester Cathedral. Clockwise from top left: the rim of a shell-tempered ware jar, the neck and rim of an oxidized ware flagon, part of a greyware jar (probably made locally), the rim of the dolium, an imported mortarium from Gaul and the base of a colour coated ware beaker (upside down) from the Nene Valley. Image: ULAS
Mortaria are a common type of vessel used during the Roman period in Britain, which change shape and size over time. They are bowls with rough grits in the base used for grinding things up, similar to how a modern-day pestle and mortar would be used. The larger vessels are thought to have been used in food preparation, whilst smaller ones could have been used for cosmetics or medicines. The example illustrated is an import from Gaul, dating from the late 1st century to the middle of the 2nd century. Most of the mortaria found in Leicester are from British sources such as Mancetter-Hartshill or the Nene Valley, so finding an imported vessel is very interesting.
The orange flagon rim in the image is an oxidised ware flagon from the Much Hadham potteries in Hertfordshire, dating to the 3rd or 4th century, whilst the colour-coated ware beaker base is from the Nene Valley and dates to the late 2nd or 3rd century.
Image 5. Rows of dolia/seria for storing wine or olive-oil at Caseggiato dei Doli (House of the Dolia) at Ostia Antica in Italy. Image: Mathew Morris
The range of pottery recovered from the Cathedral shows how cosmopolitan Leicester was and how vibrant the market place would have been. There are imported wares from Gaul, Spain and Germany along with a variety of wares from Romano-British industries from as close as Mancetter-Hartshill in Warwickshire, down to the Black Burnished ware industry of Dorset.
Image 6. Outside the Roman forum in Leicester as it may have looked in the late 2nd and 3rd centuries. The entrance to the forum was just down the street from the site at Leicester Cathedral. Image: Mike Codd / Leicester Museums and Galleries.
The next stage of analysis work will involve looking in more detail at the range of vessel types and patterns of traded wares, and working with other specialist colleagues analysing faunal and other environmental remains. This will give us insight into how people were preparing and consuming food and the economy of the town, helping us build up a detailed picture of everyday life in Roman Leicester.
