Amphores Importées D’au-Delà De La Péninsule Ibérique Provenant Des Sites Sous-Marins De La Baie De Mazarrón (Region De Murcie, Espagne)

This paper presents the results of research on amphorae imported from outside the Iberian Peninsula, extracted from the Bay of Mazarrón (Murcia Region, Spain). The amphorae are preserved in the Archaeological Museum of Murcia and in the Municipal Museum “Factoría Romana de Salazones” of Puerto de Mazarrón. 574 preserved amphorae, extracted fragmentarily from the bay during dredging in the XXth century, were studied. 11 types of amphorae imported from Italy from the fourth century BC to the seventh century AD were recognized. Four Gauloise 4 amphorae were identified from imports from Gaul Narbonne. Nine types of amphorae were imported from the Aegean and Eastern world, but they were all unique types, the LR 6 being the most numerous. Compared with imports from the Eastern Mediterranean, the amphorae imported from North Africa are the most numerous. These are 102 pieces imported from the second century BC to the beginning of the seventh century AD. They represent 23 types of amphorae, the most numerous being the African III B from Tunisia. The imports of amphorae from outside the Iberian Peninsula were compared with imports from the peninsula, including many locally produced amphorae. The comparison allowed conclusions to be drawn about the role of the Murcia region in Mediterranean trade.