SAMIAN POTTERY
A piece of decorated Samian ware
The entrance to The Armitt
A piece of decorated Samian ware
Our first object is a Roman bowl made from Samian ware, also called terra sigillata (which means ‘stamped clay’). Instantly recognizable by its shiny red exterior, or ‘slip’, Samian pottery is a form of fine tableware synonymous with the Roman Empire. Bowls like this one were made by being pressed into a mould which gave it its shape and the decorations that cover the exterior. They were mass-produced in large production centres in southern Gaul (modern day France) and shipped across the western Roman provinces. This form of pottery is found throughout Roman Britain, including at Ambleside.
While everyone used pottery in their everyday life, that did not mean that the pottery that they used was the same. Most people in the fort and town would be using locally produced pottery or variations of Romano-British coarseware pottery for their everyday needs in both cooking, eating and drinking. However, wealthier people would have used finer pottery for dining, whether imported wares like Samian, or Romano-British finewares made in places like the Nene Valley in Cambridgeshire.
This particular bowl was found in the commanding officer’s house in the fort. This indicates that it was likely part of the personal tableware of his family. Similar examples can be found across Roman Britain as part of elite households, both at other military forts and in towns. It’s possible that the commander would have personally ordered his tableware as part of a set from Gaul. At Vindolanda on Hadrian’s Wall, archaeologists found a complete table set thrown in a ditch – probably a delivery that arrived broken!
From The Armitt museum, use the island to cross to the opposite side of the road. Walk along the pavement next to the stream, past the Bridge House, situated over the water. Keep walking along the pavement past The Apple Pie bakery; when you reach the traffic lights, keep on the same pavement and travel down Compston Road past The Climbers Shop on the corner. Walk along this road until you reach J.F Martin & Co Hardware, with a blue canopy. This is where the next point of the trail is. The walking time is approximately four-five minutes.