Category Archives: In the Store

VM_365 Day 99. Pottery processing in progress

Archaeology, Broadstairs, In the Store, Roman, Thanet archaeology, Uncategorised, VM_365 Project
Pottery sherds in the ground and on the sorting table
Pottery sherds in the ground and on the sorting table

Today’s image for Day 99 of VM_365 shows how the sherds that were recovered from the dump of Roman pottery recovered from the building excavated near Fort House, overlooking Viking Bay in Broadstairs, were recovered and re-assembled into groups, representing the individual pots used in a Roman kitchen.

Each of the sets of sherds that had been lifted from the deposit was carefully washed and then laid out in piles that represented an individual vessel. Of course there were stray sherds, pieces of the puzzle each vessel had become that didn’t belong in the set they had been put with when lifted. Each unknown sherd could be tested against the vessel groups and if possible placed with the right set.

Inevitably there were sherds missing from some vessels and others that seemed not to belong to any of the large sets. Each isolated sherd represents another interesting vessel in itself but a single fragments is perhaps not as impressive as the near complete examples that were gathered together in the process.

Once each group had been assembled, with as many sherds as could be located, the job of examining, identifying and counting the pots could begin…

VM_365 Day 94. Reconstructed Roman Rotary Quern

Archaeology, In the Store, Roman, Uncategorised, VM_365 Project

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Today’s image is a reconstruction of a Roman Rotary quern. The quern stones were found on two separate sites, one from Broadstairs (bottom) and one from St. Nicholas at Wade (top).

The stone on the base is made of Hertfordshire Puddingstone, a natural conglomerate frequently used to make quern stones, the upper stone is Folkstone Greensand.

The base has a socket in the centre for a spindle to hold the two sections together. The top stone has a hole for a handle to allow the quern to be rotated backwards and forwards and a hole shaped to form a hopper where grain is poured in. The grain then passes between the grinding surfaces of the upper and lower stones, crushing them into meal or flour.

 

VM_365 Day 93. Decorated Samian sherd from Broadstairs

Archaeology, Broadstairs, In the Store, Roman, Uncategorised, VM_365 Project

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Today’s image shows a sherd of Roman samian pottery excavated from a small site near Bleak House, Broadstairs in 2009. This was one of 81 sherds of samian pottery recovered on the site representing 33 different vessels.

The piece shown is one of 11 from the same highly decorated bowl (a Dragendorf form 37) from Central Gaul, dated between 100-130 AD. The decoration is  arranged in panels divided by bead borders under an ovolo (egg shaped) border that surrounds the whole bowl.

The images on the vessel show part of a figure of the war god Mars and in a second panel in the upper half of a medallion, a nude pigmy warrior.

These motifs on samian bowls are common to Central Gaul where this bowl was manufactured.

 

VM_365 Day 90. Roman Equal-ended Brooch

Archaeology, In the Store, Roman, Thanet archaeology, Uncategorised, VM_365 Project

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Today’s image for VM_365 Day 90 shows another brooch from Abbey Farm Villa, Minster. This equal ended brooch was found in the subsoil above buildings found on the southern side of the villa complex along with a small quantity of 2nd century pottery.
Over time this copper alloy brooch has become corroded but we can still see that it  has a rectangular plate with lugs. The centre has three equal sized rectangular cells filled with enamel; the bottom cell is coloured red, the middle cell is now empty and the top cell appears to have been green or yellow enamel. Either side of the enamelled cells is a side panel with a beaded rim and rectangular lugs at the corners. This type of brooch was widespread in the 2nd and early 3rd century.

VM_365 Day 89. 2nd Century Brooch from Minster, Thanet

Archaeology, In the Store, Roman, Thanet archaeology, Uncategorised, VM_365 Project

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Today’s image is of a 2nd/early 3rd century brooch from Abbey Farm Roman Villa, Minster-in-Thanet. It was found in the upper fill of a well shaft which had been deliberately backfilled with large amounts of pottery and domestic rubbish. The pottery from the well shaft dates to the 2nd century with a few sherds as late as the early 3rd century.

The brooch is equal ended with a rectangular plate and two circular lugs. The projections are moulded and decorated with two sets of concentric circles and are broken at either end. In the centre of the brooch is a rectangular cell which was filled with enamel, now coloured yellow. The lugs are also decorated with two circular yellow enamelled cells.

References
Parfitt, K. 2007. The Roman Villa at Minster-in-Thanet. Part 4: The South-West Buildings, 6A and 6B. Archaeologia Cantiana CXXVII, 261-296.

VM_365 Day 88. Rosette brooch 1st Century AD

Archaeology, In the Store, Roman, Thanet archaeology, Uncategorised, VM_365 Project
Thistle or rosette brooch of 1st century date from Minster in Thanet
Thistle or rosette brooch of 1st century date from Minster in Thanet

Today’s image for VM_365 Day 88  is of a brooch from the 1st century AD, which was found in the excavations at the Abbey Farm Villa at Minster in Thanet. This type of brooch has a cast thistle or rosette form with elaborate relief decoration. A cylindrical roll of metal covers the spring for the fastening pin at the back of the brooch.

This type of brooch was first made in the first half of the 1st century AD, before the Roman conquest of Britain. The rosette or thistle brooch was commonly used on the continent, particularly in Gaul and on the German frontier, as well as in southern Britain before the Roman invasion. This type of brooch is occasionally found on sites that date from shortly after the Roman Conquest and often accompanying burials of the early conquest period.

They may have lasted into the Roman period as family heirlooms, because of their particularly fine style and quality.

Reference

Bailey, J. and Butcher, S. 2004. Roman Brooches in Britain. Reports of the Research Committee of the Society of Antiquaries of London No. 68. London.

VM_365 Day 87. Local materials for local bakers.

Archaeology, Broadstairs, In the Store, Iron Age, Uncategorised, VM_365 Project
Large flint nodule worked into a grinding surface
Large flint nodule worked into a grinding surface

Today’s VM_365 image shows two artefacts from Iron Age sites in Thanet. One is a large stone with a flat grinding surface, found at a large Iron Age settlement site at South Dumpton Down near Broadstairs. The second object is a spherical rubbing or grinding stone, which fits comfortably into the hand, which comes from a contemporary site at North Foreland, Broadstairs.

The two objects demonstrate how local materials, in this case flints from seams within the chalk that underlies both sites, were adapted for tools associated with daily activities. Both objects were transformed by regular working into something quite different to their irregular natural state.

The surface of the larger flint was pecked and ground to a horizontal surface by the rubbing and grinding action that may have taken place every day. The smaller flint was chipped and ground into a sphere through a similar regular striking action, possibly while it was used as a rubbing stone used on a similar flattened surface. Rotating the object in the hand for comfort  probably created the spherical shape over time.

The combination of the two objects, under the power of a human hand, created an abrasive process, which was possibly used to rub grains between the stone to make flour, or to grind other foodstuff into powders or pastes.

VM_365 Day 86. Wooden box stores Roman samian collection

Archaeology, From the Archives, In the Store, Margate, Roman, Thanet archaeology, Uncategorised, VM_365 Project
Box stores Roman samian vessels from Drapers Mills, Margate
Box stores Roman samian vessels from Drapers Mills, Margate

Today’s VM_365 image is of a collection of  whole vessels and large sherds made from a disticnctive type of Roman pottery called samian ware.

This selection comes from the archive of the excavation carried out at Drapers Mills near Margate between 1959 and 1961 by Mr Joe Coy. The site is known to have been the location of a major Roman building, probably a Villa, which has produced many interesting finds such as the boxer’s head shown in an earlier post.

Over the years the Trust for Thanet Archaeology has acquired the archives of several early excavations carried out by some of the pioneering archaeologists in Thanet. Although we have been supported with donations from our wish list and with funding for storage material, we have limited resources to do everything we might to understand and examine in detail all the material we have in storage.

When we are able to open up and examine the contents of a box, it can reveal hidden treasures like this group of samian vessels and sherds.  Samian was a high status product, manufactured in very large quantities from the early 1st century to the mid 3rd century AD. Samian producing kilns were located in southern and northern France and later in southern and eastern Germany, which were part of the province of Gaul.

Now this important group of material has been rediscovered, it can be examined and dated using up to date knowledge of the production centres and manufacturers. As more is learned from the material archives, the real significance of the Roman sites we have identified in the map of Roman Thanet becomes clearer.

The pottery in this image was discussed in greater detail by Dr. Steve Willis, a specialist in samian ware, on Day 345 of the VM_365 project. An interesting observation on the parallels between the origins of some of the pottery and the box the material was stored was discussed on on Day_346.

 

VM_365 Day 38 Medieval Floor Tiles

Archaeology, Churches, From the Archives, In the Store, Medieval, Shuart, Uncategorised, VM_365 Project

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Today’s image shows three nearly complete floor tiles from the site of one of the lost medieval parish churches of Thanet;  All Saints, Shuart. The site was excavated by the Isle of Thanet Archaeological Unit in 1978 under the direction of Frank Jenkins, assisted by Dave Perkins and site assistants from the Manpower Services Commission.

These plain glazed floor tiles were found in the demolition rubble of the latest phase of the church and are of Flemish manufacture dating to the late 14th to 15th centuries.

The Church  was originally established in the 10th century, along with St Nicholas at Wade, as dependent chapels of the Church at Reculver. All Saints was altered and expanded in the 10th-11th centuries,  12th century and again in the 13th century. By the mid 15th century the church was in ruins and it was eventually demolished by about 1630.

The reason for its decline may be that the parishes of St Nicholas at Wade and All Saints were combined in the early 14th century and it later became too much of a financial burden for the parish to support two churches;  All Saints was neglected in favour of St Nicholas at Wade.

Further reading:

Jenkins, F. 1981. The Church of All Saints, Shuart. In Detsicas, A. 1981. Collectanea Historica: Essays in Memory of Stuart Rigold. Kent Archaeological Society; Maidstone. 147-154.

 

 

 

 

VM_365 Day 32 Pottery from a period of change – Iron Age people become Romans

Archaeology, In the Store, Iron Age, Roman, Uncategorised, VM_365 Project
Locally made pottery Jar, encapsulating the transition from Iron Age to Roman culture
Locally made pottery Jar, encapsulating the transition from Iron Age to Roman culture

Today’s image for Day 32 of the  VM 365 project is of a pottery vessel dating from an interesting period in history which is well represented in Thanet’s archaeological record, the later stages of the Roman conquest of Britain (50-75/100 AD).

Dating from a period when Late Iron Age pottery traditions were giving way to new Romanising production techniques, this near complete jar in a pottery fabric known as Thanet silty ware is decorated with raised beads and a chevron pattern around the upper part of the body. This particular vessel dates no later than 60-75 AD, a couple of decades after Britain was invaded and occupied by Roman forces.

The jar was recovered from the fill of a pit (cut 216) at an excavation at a site in Sea Parade, Birchington, it  survived almost intact with only one large crack in the body of the jar and some damage to the rim. Characteristically for this type of vessel it has been deliberately made with three holes in the base, much like a modern flowerpot.

The many complete or near complete vessels of this period that have been recovered in excavations carried out at Minnis bay, particularly those of Antoinette Powell-Cotton in the 1950’s and 1960’s. The pottery sherds and vessels from these sites  have been the foundation for classification and dating this important sequence of  pottery, which spans a time of major cultural change.