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The Roman Pottery of Kent
by Dr Richard J. Pollard  -  Chapter 4  page 94
Doctoral thesis completed in 1982, published 1988

later than the early second century, and Dorset BB1 had only a very limited currency possibly confined to Richborough and of Hadrianic date. There is circumstantial evidence for the shipment of North Gaulish coarse wares, primarily jars, to Dover in the late second and early third centuries, but these do not seem to have been redistributed to other settlements from the port. Mortaria and amphorae were drawn from the same exotic sources as supplied west Kent during the Hadrianic-Severan period, excepting the Brockley Hill-Verulamium industry whose products are confined to the extreme north-west of Kent (south-east London).
   The range of forms and fabrics known to have been produced by the Canterbury industry changed but little from the time of Trajan down to the final years of the second century. The bulbous-carinated flange-rim bowl (no. 59 here) was probably discarded around the end of the first century, and the ‘pulley-rim’ flagon (no. 77) soon followed. Thenceforth, the range of jars, bowls, dishes and lids was not augmented, except for the production of ‘face-mask’ jars (no. 72) in mica-dusted and plain wares probably during the latter half of the second century, if not before. New forms of flagon, amphorae (or large flagons) and mortaria were introduced, however, as is evinced by the kiln debris on the Dane John (Kirkman 1940) and Whitehall Road Kiln III (Jenkins 1960, nos. 18—23). The flagons include cupped ring-neck (cf. no. 161 here), ringed flange-rim (nos. 80—82), triangular-bead-and-ring-neck (no. 75), plain flange-rim (no. 76), cupped bead-rim (no. 84) and angular-everted rim (no. 83) types in fine and sandy buff and oxidised wares, sometimes with a pale wash. Pinch-mouth jugs in grey sandy ware (no. 74) also continued to be made. The ‘amphorae’ comprise large two-handled necked vessels in oxidised sandy ware, with plain (no. 79) and ringed (Jenkins 1960, no. 22) flange rims. Simple ring-stamps (no. 79) or pads of applied clay (Pollard forthcoming a, no. 50) were sometimes, if not always, used 

to mask and perhaps strengthen the junction of handle to shoulder. The mortaria of the second century tended to exhibit heavy flanges with hooked lips (cf. Colchester 497: Hull 1963; arid nos. 116 and 118 here); sometimes the flanges are almost vertical, producing a ‘wall-sided’ (i.e. thickened upper wall) profile (cf. Colchester 498: Hull 1963). A second form that is frequently encountered has a more or less triangular pendant flange with a high rounded bead (Kirkman 1940, no. 17; a variant of Colchester 197, e.g. Hull 1963, fig. 65, no. 7). These forms are often embellished with ‘herringbone’ style potters’ stamps on the flanges; four different stamps were associated with the mortaria from the Dane John site (Kirkman 1940, no. 8a on vessel no. 8; a slightly different stamp on nos. 9 and 10, not illustrated, of the same size as 8a but with 6 ‘ribs’ on either side of the ‘spine’ of different spacing to those on 8a; a smaller stamp on no. 20, and a second ‘small’ stamp with 3 ‘ribs’ on either side, vessel form as no. 15, unpublished). Unlike the Canterbury/Kent name-stamps of the Trajanic-early Antonine period (4.11.3) which are found on oxidised wares, (Hartley 1968, fabric C, nos. 29 and 114; Williams 1947, fig. 7, no. 7; Hartley 1981, fabric 3, no. 367), ‘herringbone’ stamps are usually associated with fine buff wares (Hartley 1968, fabric A: nos. 107, 108, 110; id., 1972, no. 29; 1981, fabric 1, no. 364) indistinguishable from Colchester products (Hartley and Richards 1965, 35). Oxidised fine and sandy wares did continue in use, however, and became the sole fabric employed for ‘East Kent’ mortaria from the end of the second century and throughout the third. ‘Herringbone’ stamps appear to belong mainly to Antonine production at Colchester (Hartley 1963), and a similar date-range for Kent material may be assumed. The Kent stamps are incorporated in a definitive volume on Roman mortarium stamps in Britain currently in preparation by K.F. Hartley (pers. comm.).
   The Canterbury industry, and possibly also rural potteries producing Canterbury-type wares

Page 94

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