General Information
Description
The typical Iron Age mortarium has a straight everted wall, a folded rim, and a flat or concave base. The rim is always externally thickened, but the details of its profile can vary: some are oval, while others are more elongated and triangular. The exterior surface of these vessels has prominent horizontal marks of wheel-finishing, while the interior is very smooth. According to Blakely and Bennet, who examined the Persian period examples of this vessel type from Tell el-Hesi, mortaria were mould-made. Their fabric is very gritty and well-fired. Most of these vessels have very thick walls, but some examples have thinner walls. The versions with thicker walls were most probably utilized for grinding, while those with thinner walls were perhaps used for serving). The majority of thick-walled mortaria have abraded interiors, supporting their use for grinding. The coarse inclusions, unique to mortaria, created a rough surface that facilitated grinding.