Polish Archaeology in the Mediterranean (15.2003(2004))

MAREA

EGYPT

POTTERY KILN

Surprising results came from the exca-
vation of a test pit dug under the level of
the basilica in a section west of the steps to
the apse, the presumed place of the altar
and cancelli. At a depth of 1.80 m below
the surviving top of the walls, the grate of
a huge kiln for firing amphorae came to
light {Fig. 11). The part of the church
where liturgical functions were celebrated
was founded on top of this structure.
Further sections of the grid were observed
under the floor of the crypts. The kiln is
one of just a few such constructions known
from the Nile Delta.® It is 8 m in diameter
and the firing grid is c. 50 cm thick. Inside
the kiln, there were still fired examples of
amphorae dated from the 2nd-3rd century
AD.6 7) The fire chamber and the debris
above it also yielded numerous examples of
clay separators used to pile up the
amphorae for firing inside the kiln. The
preserved wall of the kiln revealed traces of
mud plastering, recorded to a height of
93 cm especially in the western part of the
circumference. The middle part of the grid
had to be removed in order to adapt the
structure for use as a foundation for the
church. The construction of the kiln did
not differ substantially from the known
pottery kiln architecture of the period:
pillars running from the firing chamber,
supporting the floor of the pottery
chamber, pierced with holes to ensure heat
flow.
The building of the basilica has been
dated provisionally to the 5 th or 6th
century. Thus, there is a stretch of over one
hundred years between the last operation

of the kiln and the time when the basilica
started being constructed. The kiln is thus
proof of a flourishing wine-manufacturing
center existing on the site before the
foundation of the Byzantine town. The
wine was packed in locally-made amphorae
and sent to other cities of the Graeco-
Roman world. One of the sherds from the
debris filling the kiln featured a stamp
with the name of the owner of the vineyard
- Dionisiou.


Fig. 11. Basilica. In the foreground, the
amphora kiln discovered under the
apse (Photo T. Kalarus)

6) Cf. Feisal El-Ashmawi, “Pottery kiln and wine factory at Burg el-Arab”, in: Commerce et artisanat dans 1’Alexandrie
hellenistique et romaine, Actes du Colloque d'Athenes 11-12 decembre, BCH, Suppl. 33 (1998), 35-64; Ahmed Abd El-
Fattah, “Recent discoveries in Alexandria and the chora”, in: ibid., 43, figs. 9-10.
7) The pottery was kindly dated by Dr. G. Majcherek.

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