In this article it is analysed the pottery produced in Phocaean workshops, discovered in the “Faleză Est” sector of the late Roman fortress Argamum. The forms identified are H 1, H 2, H 3, H 4, H 5, H 8 and H 10. Most common of all by far is the form H 3. Chronologically, the studied ceramic group dates between the middle of the 4th century and the third quarter of the 7th century.
Argamum
Late Roman Tableware from Argamum – ‘Faleză Est’. African, Cypriot, Egeean and Pontic wares
The archaeological excavations of the ‘Faleză Est’ sector have extended over twenty years. Their result was the discovery of a large quantity of ceramic fragments from the Hellenistic and Roman eras. This article analyzes the tableware from the late Roman period, imported from North Africa, Cyprus, the Aegean basin and the Pontic region. Most of the imported tableware comes from North African workshops. The ceramic fragments discovered in the ‘Faleză Est’ sector are dated in the 5th–6th centuries.
Late Roman tableware from Argamum
The late Roman fine pottery presented in this article was discovered after the archaeological research carried out in the late Roman fortress of Argamum between 1998 and 2001, in the Basilica 2 and Basilica 1 areas, by F. Topoleanu and I. Vizauer. A sample of 84 ceramic fragments was analysed, the typology being based on the geographical area of origin. The 84 shards were divided into three groups: North African pottery, wares made in Asia Minor and wares produced in the Black Sea Basin. The present article represents a first step in the knowledge of Argamum’s archaeological realities, both from the perspective of tableware and the historical evolution of the site, especially during the last two centuries of its existence.