General Information

In 1980, Hayes referred to this ware as shadowy (Hayes, Supplement to Late Roman Pottery, 1980, p. 530), and indeed it remains obscure. According to Hayes, “the ware appears to be found only in 7th-century contexts, and may, as Waagé suggests, have arisen largely as a substitute for the other Late Roman wares, as they disappeared from the market. It does not seem to have become common before c. 620 … Egyptian C may … have continued to be made until c. 700 or even later” (Hayes, Late Roman Pottery [1972], p. 401). Hayes observed that it is doubtful if Egyptian C had an Egyptian source, since “it is by no means certain that the finds from Syria and Egypt are of the same ware as those from Egypt. It cannot be ruled out that it was made in Cyprus, but the distribution of such finds in the island does not point to a particular center or geographical region” (Hayes in Salamine de Chypre, 1980, pp. 377-8 and fig. 4).*

* this excerpt is from Lund 2006, p. 229, on the fine wares from Panayia Ematousa, in Cyprus

The fabric is fairly uniform: the clay color is light brown (7.5YR 6/4), and the fabric contains fine dark grey inclusions, mostly together whitish ones. The slip is red (2.5YR 4/8 -5/6-6/6 or 10R 4/6-4/8). It was occasionally burnished and could appear scratched and worn.