General Information

The Gerasa volute lamp is a locally manufactured version of a mold-made type produced widely across the southern Levant in the 2nd century CE (Rosenthal and Sivan 1978, pp. 82-84). The Gerasa lamps share with others of this type a low, rounded body with a wide, flat rim around the filling hole, a volute-shaped nozzle, and a single handle. The nozzles vary in length. The clay color ranges from light to dark brown, sometimes with a reddish-brown slip on the rim and sides. A diverse array of designs adorn the rim, from simple ridges and beading to more elaborate imbricated vine motifs. 

The variations in clay color, nozzle finish, and design suggest production in different workshops around the city. While a precise manufacturing location has not yet been found, the discovery of a shop with a great many lamps of this type as well as figurines indicates that they were made nearby (Iliffe 1945). Excavators have found many lamps of this type in contexts dating from the very beginning to the end of the 2nd c. CE. These include foundation deposits of the Temple of Zeus and the Hippodrome.

Jerash/Gerasa (Jordan/Northern Highlands)