Details

COLEM:Jarmin.3

Colchester Collections

pot, face pot, cremation vessel

The face pot contains the cremated remains of an adult male who grew up in Essex, possibly Colchester. At some point in his life this man suffered an injury to his arm, which led to an infection, the traces of which can still be seen on the bone. After his death, he was cremated on a pyre, the remains of which were then gathered and placed in this pot. A flagon was fitted as a lid and the pot placed into the small 'tile tomb', buried in the ground. A lamp depicting the goddess Luna was included, perhaps symbolic of lighting his way to the next life. The ‘tile tomb’ burial was excavated from Roman Colchester’s southern cemetery area over 100 years ago. The face pot is Braithwaite type RB 13A. Face pots are unusual Roman cremation vessels that have a face applied to the body of the pot. Although there are similarities in style, each one is unique in some way. They are rare in Britain, but Colchester has one of the largest collections. Face pots have been associated with the Roman army, and this may explain their popularity in Colchester, which had a strong military community from AD 49. It is still unknown whether the face was meant to represent an image of the deceased, a god or goddess or had some other meaning.

0117 - 0138

Roman

height: 291.00 mm
width: 230.00 mm