The Internal Organization of the Arretine Terra Sigillata Industry: Problems of Evidence and Interpretation

Abstract

If the field of ancient economy is a battlefield, arguments based on pottery research certainly belong with the best of the weapons. Among the various kinds of pottery serving ancient historians as sources, red-gloss pottery (terra sigillata) manufactured in several parts of the Roman Empire plays an outstanding role. This special kind of pottery bears inscriptions in the form of stamps referring to persons involved in its production. In combination with the archaeological contexts of stamp finds, such as excavated sites of production, transportation, storage, and consumption, these inscriptions enable us to gain an insight into the structures of production and distribution. An additional reason why Roman red-gloss pottery is of very great interest to students of the ancient economy is that it was mass-produced, and exported to all parts of the Empire. Results of research in this field are, therefore, frequently used as weighty arguments in the discussion of the character of the Roman economy as a whole.