VESSEL

Roman vessel: Roman vessel: Samian ware cup, form 35 in Hartley 'Samian ware or terra sigillata' chapter VIII in Collingwood and Richmond (1969 edition) The Archaeology of Roman Britain. No potters stamp is present. The curved rim is decorated with stylised leaves en barbotine: a thick clay slip was trailed onto the surface of the vessel in the form of tear-drop shaped leaves with a curved stem. The main body of the vessel is plain and undecorated. The red glaze has been damaged and has been removed from the surface in places where adhering soil has subsequently dried out and detached the glaze. The vessel is largely in tact, however it is damaged around approximately one third of the rim. Two sherds have been recovered. The breaks are recent, which join the breaks on the vessel and comprise an additional quarter of the rim. This form of vessel is found throughout the period, however it is more common in the late 2nd century. The vessel was found next to, and slightly overlapping, a samian bowl with the same decorative design. The bowl (including sherds) weighs 176.87 grams. At the rim the external diameter is 133.61mm, internal diameter 94.73mm. The width of the bowl decreases to 118.75mm across the break. The bowl is 50.16mm high. The body wall is 5.32mm thick. The two sherds measure 1) 54.51mm wide and 23.63mm high 2)48.01mm wide and 16.22mm high.