Talk:Amphora

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Contents 1 Invented by Ancient Greeks? 2 Amphoras used until the 7th century! Not true! 3 As a potter, I must ask... 4 Pointed base

[edit] Invented by Ancient Greeks?

Is there a source that can be cited to support this? I've heard from other sources that it is a Canaanite invention. Agne27 23:34, 16 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Amphoras used until the 7th century! Not true!

Amphorae are at least used until the first half of the 13th century AD. This information is based on several shipwrecks and their amphora cargoes located in the Sea of Marmara (Ancient Propontis). Actually, the kiln sites of these Byzantine transport jars were also discovered at Ganos. There is also a typology constructed by Nergis Gunsenin. The amphorae are called Gunsenin Type 1 and so forth.

The 7th century information in the Amphora article should therefore be corrected. Since the 7th century is linked to another page giving information on 7th century itself, I did not edit it myself - am a beginner.

Would anyone help?

For further information please see:

N. Gunsenin. "Ganos : Centre de Production d'Amphores à l'Epoque Byzantine" Anatolia Antiqua II, Paris (1993), p. 193-201.

N. Gunsenin. "Byzantine Shipwrecks Discovered around the Marmara Islands (Prokonnessos): Points of Departure and Probable Destinations"VIth International Symposium on Ship Construction in Antiquity, Tropis VI (Athens), (2001), p. 221-222.

Ctevrin 14:52, 13 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] As a potter, I must ask...

How the heck would you THROW one of those things? Using a stick?

A: If you don't know how you would throw an amphora, then you must not be a very experienced potter.

Addendum: That wasn't an answer, that's just someone being ugly.

[edit] Pointed base

I frequently hear people ask about why amphorae have pointed bases. (I'm a teacher, and kids are curious.) This article explains that they were pointed so that they could stand up in soft sand or earth. But why is that better than a flat bottom? Is it technically harder to make a jar with a flat bottom? Was the ancient lifestyle such that most people had sand or soft earth in their storage rooms? I wonder if a knowledgeable contributor could add another sentence or two explaining this a bit further. I suspect I'm not the only person who has read this article and wondered about that. Thanks! –Taranah 01:15, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

I assume you mean transport amphorae, since most domestic amphorae did have feet (see Typology of Greek Vase Shapes). I've wondered about this myself, I believe examples have been found in graves and basements in Pompeii in exactly the half-buried upright position you describe. Why that shape? I doubt there's a definitive answer (as usual in archaeology), but consider this - shelves might not have been a universally available technology at the time. If a thing was to be carried from pottery, to vineyard, to port, to ship, to store it would have adapt to a variety of settings, and dirt floors and sand balast would be more likely than paved floors or stacking shelves. Twospoonfuls 12:47, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Could it perhaps have something to do with the structural stability of the clay, able to hold heavier goods without requiring more careful work in its construction which might raise the price of production? Either way, the question of its shape should be answered in the article if someone has a definitive answer.