Kilns discovery could lead to Roman rethink.

[Gaius Paulinus Maximus]

THE DISCOVERY of two Roman structures in Otford could lead to a revaluation of their time in Britain. The last two weeks of an archeological project to excavate a site in the village drew to a close earlier this month with experts believing they may have unearthed two pottery kilns, each around 4m in diameter. Until now it had not been thought that the firing of pottery

[Melvadius]

THE DISCOVERY of two Roman structures in Otford could lead to a revaluation of their time in Britain. ...

 

It is currently an interesting find to speculate about but I know several Romano-British pottery experts who would like to see the all of the evidence before claiming this find as a major discovery.

 

The key to how important this find will be is thorough scientific investigation of the 'fabric' of the pottery apparently found contained within the kiln and comparison of this against known pottery types (the precise mix of pottery and type of inclusions provide 'characteristic fingerprint's').

 

If the pottery is from these particular kilns last firing then it could provide the terminus post quem ( last known date) for a when particular group of pottery was being made. There are several groups of pottery whose distribution across Roman Britain (and in some cases the continent) is well known but where the precise manufacturing base has not yet been identified. Alternatively in some cases more than one site is know to have made very similar pottery - possibly as satellite kilns from a main centre or where the manufacturing base moved over time.

 

One to keep an eye on, so thanks for putting up the article

 

Melvadius

Edited April 30, 2009 by Melvadius