Drink Like the Romans: Production and Consumption of Thin-Walled Ware Pottery in Nea Paphos During the Early Roman Period

This paper focuses on Early Roman thin-walled (ThW) pottery from the agora and Fabrika Hill in Nea Paphos, Cyprus. The material was examined macroscopically, and a selection of samples was subjected to elemental analysis (WD-XRF) and thin-section petrography to trace their provenance. The results revealed the presence of local production as well as off-island imports. They also show the low consumption of ThW pottery at the site as well as the dominance of the imports from Asia Minor over local production. These support the interpretation that external cultural influence, although present, had little effect on the islanders, who apparently were conservative in their choice of vessels and practices. The paper thus aims to contribute to a broader scholarly debate on the influence of Roman traditions on local productions and on processes of globalisation in antiquity. Furthermore, it discusses the phenomenon of the production of ThW vessels in the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire.