Polish Archaeology in the Mediterranean (18.2006(2008))

MARINA EL-ALAMEIN

EGYPT

pointing to a 1st century AD presence of
some substance. No evidence of an earlier
date than the 1st century AD was noted
anywhere in the trenches (but admittedly,
the lower-lying deposits may not have been
reached in any of the trenches).
The archaeological material from the
trenches, which is currently under study,
covers the usual set of tableware and plain
and storage wares, some terracottas and oil
lamps, three of which have been presented
in this report, a variety of bronze and iron
fragments, including the above mentioned
iron adze, which is fortunately dated by the
context to the second half of the 2nd
century AD, stone vessels and tools, as well
as various architectural elements and
furnishings, of which not the least are three
small limestone altars. The set of coins,
mostly Antonine issues of the mid-2nd
century and some later, 4th century
examples, deserves note. The glass finds,
while not spectacular on the whole,
constitute a fair representation of the
repertoire known to come from the second
half of the 1st century BC through the 3rd
century AD excavated elsewhere in Marina
(Kucharczyk 2005).5 The assemblage is
fragmentary, showing advanced black and
ivory weathering, and peacock irisation. As

far as it could be made out, the glass is
colorless with yellowish and greenish tinge
or a natural green and greenish-blue. Few
of the mainly free blown, open vessels are
decorated. Tableware is represented by
indented beakers with rounded rims and
flat, almost square bases; deep bowls;
shallow dishes with different rims; ring
bases, and applied “fillets” tooled into
a series of ribs imitating handles. Other
open forms include cast dishes/shallow
bowls and ribbed bowls. Closed forms are
attested mostly by a flagon with fine
ribbed handle and bottles, some possibly
furnished with handles, used as tableware
and for cosmetic purposes. They are
represented mostly by their bases of
different shapes and sizes (with a slightly
domed bottom, with applied thick trail
forming a ring, with closed and open folds)
with no clear indication as to body shape.
The pontil mark is generally absent,
although large scars have been noted in
a few cases. A few finds, including game
pieces (monochrome astragali and a ball),
and a spherical bead probably made of
mosaic glass, were formed by non-blowing
techniques. Two fragments represented
cast glass — thick, flat window panes with
original rounded and cut edges.

TRENCH 12 ALONGSIDE THE THOLOS BATHS

Plans for a tourist path through the city
center and past the east side of the tholos
bath required some archaeological clearing
at the junction of the baths and the eastern
portico of the main town square, where one
of the presumed entrances to the baths was
located. Blocks lying on the surface sug-

gested that the entire east wall of the round
tholos room had tumbled to the ground in
this area (at a fairly late date to be lying this
way). This wall was cleared and found to be
in order, all 3.50 m of it, giving a total
height for the tholos bath wall of about
5.40 m in this place. The tumble at the

5 Renata Kucharczyk of the PCMA, who has studied extensively the glass from Polish excavations in Marina, kindly
provided the following remarks in extenso.

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