Rome, 1st century BCE to 2nd century CE. This large terracotta storage vessel is a Dressel 2-4 style, with a bead rim at the top of a tall neck, bifid handles, a long cylindrical body, and a short stubby toe. It's purpose was the transport and storage of wine. After more than two centuries of bottling Italian wine in a classic Roman shape amphora, Italian potters found inspiration in the shape of amphorae from the Aegean island of Kos. This shape had a much better weight to capacity ratio; it was shorter and had thinner walls than older types. As a result, it could fit more easily into the ships which drove Mediterranean trade. The new form, the Dressel 2-4, was adopted by pottery production centers throughout Italy and exported Italian wines across the Roman Empire and its sphere of influence; Dressel 2-4s have been found as far afield as the British Isles and India, making it the most widely distributed of any ancient Roman amphora. Its success led pottery workshops in other provinces, like Gaul and Spain, to begin producing their own versions of its form; this, in turn, meant that those provinces began to export their own wine and as a result, Italian vineyards lost their monopoly on the Mediterranean. By the time wide-scale production ceased on this style of amphora, the nature of the Roman wine trade had changed completely, thanks mainly to the technological advances given by its elegant shape. Size: 44" tall and 13" diameter at its widest (the shoulder).

Provenance: Ex-private Denver, CO collection acquired by his father before 1955 who personally excavated in northern Aegean Sea.

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#109331

Near choice, perhaps a small section of tip missing under encrusted surface