Pottery bowls from Miletos
Project leader: Alexandra
Villing
Department: Greek and Roman
Antiquities
Project
start: 1995
End date: 2008/9
External partners:
German Excavations at Miletos (Director: Prof.
Dr. Volkmar von Graeve, Ruhr-Universität Bochum)
www.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/milet/
Description:
Miletos was one of the most powerful and influential
cities of ancient Greece in the Archaic period, birthplace of the
Ionian school of philosophy and founder of some 80 colonies. The
German excavations at the site have recently discovered much new
evidence for its period of greatest flowering, by excavating parts
of the Archaic settlement, city wall and sanctuaries, thus shedding
light especially on the arts, cults, trade connections and daily
life of its inhabitants. The large amounts of pottery that have
been found play an important role in this process.
Bowls, a fundamental shape in pottery of
all ages, are a major feature also at Miletos. Several thousand
examples have been found in the Archaic houses and in the
sanctuaries. Often plain with little decoration, the majority were
objects of daily use rather than prestige goods, and their
production was largely governed by practical considerations. The
rich repertoire of shapes found in Miletos is nevertheless
remarkable: the many types identified include large, well-potted
bowls for storage, bowls for mixing and processing foods
(lekanai), small bowls for eating from, and shallow heavy
bowls for grinding foods (mortaria). Most were locally
produced, but some were also imported, from Corinth and possibly
from North Ionia, the Troad, and even Cyprus. This contradicts the
common belief that plain household pottery was not usually traded,
and shows that the quality of certain wares was appreciated even in
the field of daily food processing.
Objectives:
The study of the
bowls of Miletos aims to chart the development of the shapes, to
understand their usage, to examine their relation with similar
shapes elsewhere and to investigate their trade, by identifying
imports in Miletos and exported Milesian bowls elsewhere. Looking
at bowls in the wider context of food storage, preparation and
serving in the house as well in sanctuaries, ancient Milesian food
customs and dining will be brought into sharper profile. In
addition, comparative studies and in particular the scientific
analysis of bowls from Miletos and other sites, conducted mainly at
the British Museum, shed new light on the phenomenon of trade of
‘coarse wares’ in the Archaic and Classical
Mediterranean.
More information:
Homepage of the Miletos excavations (in German): www.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/milet/
Publications:
A. Villing, ‘Funde aus Milet I. Zwei
archaische Schüsselformen’, Archäologischer Anzeiger
(1999), pp. 189-202
Images (from top):
- The German excavations at
Miletos: processing finds from the new
excavations.
- Fragment of an exceptional bowl from
Miletos decorated in the Fikellura style, ca. 530 BC.
- A local pottery mortarium from
Miletos, 6th century BC; the worn inside shows that it
has been used for grinding foods with a pestle.