Internet Archaeol 9. Hunter-Mann. Fabrics

Group	Fabric	Code	Sherds	%	Weight	%
Fine wares	Rough-cast	RC	6	0.04	68	0.03
	Koln ware	KOLN	9	0.06	14	0.01
	Central Gaul black-slipped	CGBL	24	0.17	117	0.05
	Nene Valley colour-coated	NVCC	821	5.81	5843	2.74
	Colour-coated	CC	6	0.04	16	0.01
	York Painted ware	YOPA	6	0.04	49	0.02
Local production	Brough colour-coated	BRCC	2105	14.89	6664	3.12
	Brough oxidized	BROX	233	1.65	1645	0.77
	Brough white-slipped	BRWS	12	0.08	132	0.06
Oxidized	North Gaul cream	NGCR	31	0.22	166	0.08
	Verulamium Reg. white	VRW	2	0.01	5	0.00
	Parchment ware	PARC	3	0.02	30	0.01
	Cream	CR	54	0.38	698	0.33
	Oxidized white-slipped	OXWS	40	0.28	539	0.25
	Oxidized	OX	327	2.31	3765	1.76
BB1-2	BB1	BB1	33	0.23	549	0.26
	BB1 grey	BB1G	6	0.04	297	0.14
	BB2	BB2	309	2.19	5110	2.39
Grey fine	Parisian type	PART	22	0.16	296	0.14
	'London Ware'	LOND	1	0.01	2	0.00
	Grey fine	GFIN	60	0.42	371	0.17
Grey	Grey	GREY	5556	39.31	90489	42.38
	Grey minimal shell	GYMS	9	0.06	183	0.09
Coarse	Iron Age tradition gritty	IAGR	16	0.11	593	0.28
	Native type	NAT	7	0.05	154	0.07
	Coarse	COAR	1	0.01	16	0.01
Shell/calcite-gritted	Dales Ware	DWSH	1694	11.99	32391	15.17
	Calcite/shell	CASH	879	6.22	19035	8.91
	Shell-gritted	SHEL	18	0.13	347	0.16
Coarse OXSH	Coarse oxidized shell-gritted	OXSH	504	3.57	16249	7.61
Mortaria	North Gaul	MONG	17	0.12	971	0.45
	Rhineland	MORH	14	0.10	2104	0.99
	Verulamium Region	MOVR	1	0.01	17	0.01
	Colchester	MOCO	2	0.01	178	0.08
	South Carlton	MOSC	6	0.04	387	0.18
	Lincolnshire	MOLIN	1	0.01	39	0.02
	Mancetter/Hartshill	MOMH	9	0.06	2088	0.98
	Nene Valley	MONV	14	0.10	940	0.44
	North Yorkshire	MONYO	4	0.03	265	0.12
	Local	MOLO	17	0.12	1150	0.54
	Unsourced	MORT	1	0.01	4	0.00
Amphorae	Dressel 20	DR20	48	0.34	4754	2.23
	Gauloise 4	GAU4	9	0.06	239	0.11
	Gauloise 12	GAU12	2	0.01	157	0.07
	Unsourced	AMPH	7	0.05	127	0.06
Samian	South Gaul	SAMSG	62	0.44	430	0.20
	Les Martres de Veyre	SAMMV	22	0.16	165	0.08
	Central Gaul	SAMCG	465	3.29	5935	2.78
	East Gaul	SAMEG	104	0.74	1635	0.77
Non-Roman	Post-Roman	PRO	530	3.75	6048	2.83
Tile	Tile	TILE	5	0.04	77	0.04
Total			14134	100	213543	100

Table 10: All fabrics, quantities. Click on Code for further information. The tile is not fully recorded or discussed here; see section 5.6.4

This shows the grouping of fabrics for further examination; fabrics occurring below 1%, as the shell-gritted, coarse wares of Iron Age types and fine grey wares are not included in the following analysis, although BB1 is included as part of the group BB1-2. It is important to note that the local production of fine wares accounts for 17% of sherds and 4% by weight.

4.6.1 Examination by period

The quantities from Periods 0-2 are too small to be useful and that from Period 8 is of debatable value, comprising only 209 Roman sherds. In order to allow comparison with other groups, the unusual inclusions of the quantity of local production waste (which account for over 50% of all sherds from Periods 3 and 4) and the OXSH fragments, not certainly from vessels, have been excluded from the calculation of percentages. Excluding these categories, the sample consists of 10,745 sherds. The distribution of these less usual components of the assemblage and of the specialist wares are shown separately from the main coarse wares.

The distribution of specialist pottery, samian, mortaria and amphorae across the periods is shown on Fig.52 using percentages based on sherds in preference to weight, particularly as there was a quantity of Dressel 20 amphorae in Period 8 (accounting for 30% of the Roman pottery).

The quantity of samian in Period 9 emphasizes the high level of plough disturbance of the underlying layers. The highest proportion of samian came from Period 7, largely ploughsoil, and percentages based on weight produce a similar result. The least fragmented samian occurs in Periods 5 and 6 (18.5 and 16.4g/sherd), the sherd weight dropping thereafter, although still registering 10g in Period 9. Amphorae occur only as single sherds until Period 4 when the first mortaria appear.

Excluding the complication of the local fine ware waste sherds, and the coarse OXSH fragments, the fabric groups are shown on Fig.53, omitting the small samples of Periods 0-2, by percentages based on weight.

When charted by percentages based on sherd count, the relative positions of the fabrics in each period largely remain the same, the only differences being the higher percentages of the thin-walled fine wares in Periods 5, 8 and 9. The relationships between DWSH and CASH are unchanged.

This chart shows very little difference in terms of coarse wares between Periods 5-7, from which Periods 8 and 9 derive most of their material. Periods 3 and 4 differ in a number of respects: higher proportions of oxidized ware, and sparser levels of CASH and much less DWSH, particularly in Period 3, where a single rim sherd came from Phase 2, group 21.6. Although DWSH occurs in the earliest period, this is considered to be due to contamination (Period 0, group 2.4), and CASH appears to be the local fabric derived from native pottery, with DWSH being the newcomer, the main occurrence starting in Period 4. Twenty of the 33 sherds of BB1 occur first in Periods 3 and 4, while the main concentration and highest sherd weight of BB2 is in Period 5. The fine grey vessels (not charted, most representing below 1%) are present from the earliest period (a single sherd of GFIN), and rise just above 1% in Periods 3 and 8.

The main coarse wares may be compared with groups from the city of Lincoln (Darling forthcoming a), particularly from the areas of Wigford and the Lower City, both with higher quantities of Roman pottery: Wigford 40,500 sherds, Lower City 60,700 sherds. In order to compare the two areas, the late coarse fabric has been included with the shell-gritted Dales ware from the City, to compare with the combined calcite/shell-gritted and Dales ware from Brough.

Some of the differences are clearly due to chronological factors, both the Lincoln groups having some 1st and 2nd century pottery (lowest in the Wigford group), so that fewer oxidized ware vessels, particularly cream flagons and the like, and amphorae may be due to the earlier content at Lincoln. The most notable divergence is, as anticipated, in the shell or calcite-gritted category; again, this is probably due to chronology, the use of such fabrics having a longer life in South Yorkshire. The percentage of samian compares well with that from Lincoln, but the fine wares are particularly low, only 50% of that from Wigford, and well down on the percentage from the Lower City. Since the Brough assemblage is so strongly 3rd century, when quantities of colour-coated wares were available, this low proportion is notable. When individual Lincoln sites are examined, the range is from 9/11-18/20%, so the percentage from Period 5 at 11% lies within this range. Whether this paucity of fine wa res is confined to the rubbish dumped in this extra-mural area or is more widespread is impossible to tell, and clearly information from other sites in the area would be preferable for comparative purposes.

4.6 Fabrics

4.6.1 Examination by period