A Contribution to the Study of Glastonbury Ware from South-Western Britain

Abstract

SummaryA petrological study of the rock inclusions present in Early Iron Age Glastonbury ware suggests that the raw materials for pottery making were not usually obtained on or near the find-sites, but from specific localities throughout south-western England. Since each of the petrological groups has its own range of typological traits there is reason to believe that the completed pots, rather than the materials, were transported, suggesting the activity of specialist potters working from production centres. The relevance of the new evidence to the origin of the decorative styles and the cultural interpretation of the pottery is briefly discussed.