General InformationAt least two different transport amphora types were made of Nea Paphos Agora Fabric 9.
A fragment of transport amphora rim made of this fabric was found in a closed Late Hellenistic deposit (Well S.173) at the Agora in Nea Paphos. It is an everted, rounded rim. A handle attachment is visible just below the rim in this example. Its shape reminds of the rim shape of transport amphorae from the House of Dionysos in Nea Paphos classified by Hayes (1991, 91) as Type I and dated to the 2nd century CE. Fragments of amphorae Hayes Type I have also been found at the Agora. These amphorae are characterized by an everted and thickened rim, rounded at the top; handles are attached below the rim, their horizontal part is shorter than the vertical one, they bend roundly and they are double-barreled in section. Body is pear-shaped, ended with pointed conical foot, flat at the bottom.
As indicated by fragments of handles excavated at the Agora in Nea Paphos, also amphorae of Agora M54 type were made of Nea Paphos Agora Fabric 9. Amphorae of this type have an everted rim and a long, bulged neck, nearly as wide as the body. Their shoulders are barely marked, the body is ovoid and ended with a plain, pointed foot. Handles are attached just below the rim and to the lower part of the neck; their line follows the neck shape, they are peaked in the upper part and double-barreled in section. No other amphorae of Agora M54 made of this fabric have been reported. Amphorae of Agora M54 type were also made of other fabrics (cf. http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archives/view/amphora_ahrb_2005/petrology.cfm?id=10). They are dated to the 2nd century CE.
Nea Paphos Agora Fabric 9 is the most common fabric of Late Hellenistic and Roman roof tiles found at the Agora in Nea Paphos.
Description
Nea Paphos Agora Fabric 9 is either reddish yellow (7.5YR 7/6) or pink (7.5YR 8/4) in the core and pale brown (2.5Y 8/3) on the surface. It is a hard and rough fabric that contains of three types of inclusions: 1. orange to red ones which occur in a moderate to abundant amount and are of a medium to coarse size, 2. grey-brown ones which occur in an abundant amount and are of a medium to coarse size, and 3. white ones, which occur in a sparse amount and are of a medium to coarse size. This fabric corresponds to the fabric of transport amphorae of Type I from the House of Dionysos in Nea Paphos described by Hayes (1991) as of possibly Cypriot origin.

Paphos/Nea Paphos (Cyprus/Western South Coast)