Archaeologists in northern France have uncovered a large Roman pottery complex that preserves evidence of nearly every stage of ceramic production, from obtaining and preparing clay to shaping vessels and firing them in kilns.
The workshop at Sermaize stood near the presumed route of the Via Agrippa, a Roman road that connected Noyon and Amiens. Roads formed a vast network across the Roman Empire, helping connect settlements and allowing people and goods to move over long distances, as a new digital reconstruction of the Roman road network has shown.
The site developed into an organized production center from the second half of the first century B.C. Craftspeople divided the area into separate working spaces. Archaeologists found clay-processing basins, potter’s wheels, kilns, and buildings constructed on wooden posts or foundations of chalk and sandstone.
Archaeologists trace pottery production from clay to kiln
North of the workshop, excavators identified a possible clay extraction zone covering about 2,500 square meters (27,000 square feet). It contained around 50 pits. Researchers are analyzing the material to determine whether potters used clay extracted directly from the site. They will compare natural clay with samples from features associated with ceramic production. Similar scientific methods are increasingly being used to trace the origins of ancient pottery by studying the mineral and chemical composition of ceramics.
Twenty rectangular, flat-bottomed basins provide evidence for the next stage. Potters may have used them to store, settle, or otherwise process clay before shaping it. Archaeologists also found an area containing nummulites, fossilized marine organisms. The material may have been crushed for use as temper in pottery. Evidence for shaping vessels is particularly extensive.
Archaeologists identified 14 groups of potter’s wheels concentrated in small working areas. Most contained between two and six wheels, suggesting several craftspeople could work at the same time. Six stone pivots associated with the wheels and 13 flint pottery tools were also recovered.
Kilns changed as the workshop developed
The firing technology changed over time. Kilns dating from the late first to early second century A.D. included double firing spaces with cross-shaped internal walls. Between the mid-second and mid-third centuries, potters used other double-chamber kilns to produce dark ceramics. Four additional kilns from the period had single firing spaces and suspended hearths. Evidence of construction and repairs shows that workers modified the kilns during their use.
The organization of the site echoes discoveries at other ancient production centers. Archaeologists recently uncovered three additional rooms and a second kiln at a 2,400-year-old pottery workshop in Sicily, providing further evidence of how ancient craftspeople separated different stages of ceramic production.
Earlier production at Sermaize focused on fine tableware, including black-surfaced ceramics inspired by Italic terra nigra, mica-gilt goblets and shell-tempered cooking vessels. The workshop was also part of a lived-in settlement. Archaeologists identified about 10 cellars, along with hearths, wells, household objects, animal remains and ceramics. A comparable mixture of industry and settlement activity has emerged at the Roman production district uncovered at ancient Suasa in Italy.
Together, the discoveries show that pottery production and everyday life occupied the same spaces at Sermaize. The broad range of remains allows archaeologists to reconstruct how Roman craftspeople organized ceramic production beside one of the region’s ancient transport routes.
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