KENT ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY  -- RESEARCH   Studying and sharing Kent's past      Homepage

The Roman Pottery of Kent by Dr Richard J. Pollard  -  Chapter 4  page 55
Doctoral thesis completed in 1982, published 1988


Fig. 17. Mid- first century A.D. copies of imported fine wares: Distribution. 
+ = absent ('Gallo-Belgic' includes Camulodunum Forms 21/22).

true that 'west Kent' shelly wares are occasionally found on east Kent sites, but these need not all be of post-Conquest importation and in any case may well have been acquired through indigenous mechanisms of trade and exchange rather than through any method consequent upon the imposition of the Roman systems of taxation and administration (Pollard 1983a, 474-535). 'Patch Grove' ware provides a link between Kent and Surrey that is not clearly visible in the Iron Age, but little is known of the Surrey area in the century before the Conquest, and it is possible that this 'link' may have been established prior to the Conquest through other wares. The forms of 'Patch Grove' ware, and the infrequency with which it is found on urban and 'small town'  sites (see Tyers and Marsh 1978, and Appendix 5 below), do not suggest that it was particularly influenced by fashions and institutions introduced by Continental immigrants. Rather, it is best seen as a purely indigenous development coincident with the establishment of Roman rule. That it achieved a wide distribution in the pre- to early Flavian period within an essentially rural area supports this view, for it clearly contrasts markedly with the highly localised distribution of the wares of the two 'Roman' industries of the pre-Flavian period, the Eccles and 'Reed Avenue/St. Stephen's Road' concerns. Moreover, it is thought that the

Page 55

Page 54      Back to Chapter 4    Contents Page         Page 56

For details about the advantages of membership of the Kent Archaeological Society   click here

Back to Publications On-line               Back to Research Page            Back to Homepage                 

This site is hosted by nVeracity      Kent Archaeological Society is a registered charity number 223382
© Kent Archaeological Society 2004     

This website is constructed by enthusiastic amateurs. Any errors noticed by other researchers will be to gratefully received so
 that we can amend our pages to give an accurate record as possible. Please send details too research@kentarchaeology.org.uk