DetectingWales.com

right im not sure if im in the right section but just wondered if there are any pottery expert's on here.
i live near a castle called morlais in merthyr tydfil. iit's built on a side of a quarrey and apparentley the Norman's built it.
Yesterday whilst up detecting there i came across some pottery which i would love to have dated.
could be a bit more history about this castle has iv got a feeling this pottery is before the norman's.

Paul - aka - WaltonBasinMan would be the DW man for this. He'll be along shortly.

Do you have any photos? I could have an educated guess, but Paul will know a lot more than me.

Hope that helps and welcome on board.

Neil

Same here - pottery not my strongest point. But can you get a picture?

ditto -- would love to see some pics

yeah got a few pics of pottery id love for him to look at or yourselves.
i also found a brick with a pattern on from pendarren park which was once a roman fort, id love to know if thats roman to.
ill take some pics of other pottery to and look forward to knowing, this bit in morlais castle could be very interesting.
thanks lads

Yeah been on a few courses with a few experts like David Barker at Stoke on Trent and Paul Blinkhorn lately of Time Team Fame. Both men who know their stuff and I learnt a lot. Put your bricks, pottery, Tiles up and I will see if my extensive library can help. Only to glad to help.

here's the first bot of pottery in the grounds of a norman castle

here's the second, i think it's a bit of wall, i found on a roman fort, not sure if it's roman has there's loads off different stuff there?

here's another ifound on a roman road, any ideas lads?

Well Bassman. The top picture I think is Roman Grayware 2nd Century AD. The middle picture looks like a piece of carved marble Roman perhaps from a villa or a portable temple. The bottom piece looks Iron Age to me. Late 1st century BC to Early 1st century AD. Would need to see them first hand to be fairly confident with that analysis. As an added note Chef,s following post could be right as well as I viewed the pics on a different computer today, (works) and came to a totally different conclusion. Get them to your FLO fella or bring them to the Tintern Rally and I will bring my books.

Some nice bits of pottery there I have not a clue when it come to that kinda stuff but the. Id that been given lucky u

thank you very much more lead than a church roof
your analysis sounds very good and im more than willing to bring them to you so you can look at them better.i had a feeling the bottom one was iron age has it's really old and i found that on a roman road.
and the middle picture i had a feeling was roman and just needed it seconed. but the record books say pendarren park was a fort, i look forward to finding more out about this, i have a load more stuff from pendarren park to be looked at.
but the top picture of all if you are right could change the history of merthyr, well not so much change it has we know the roman roads run through it and there was a fort there but no roman finds ever been found at morlais castle which is supposingly a norman castle but this potery could prove to have had a roman past there, i also have a load of other stuff i have to get checked out from there.
like i said drop me an email at athomas43@hotmail.com and if you have got the time i will drive to you so you can have a better look at these things, thanks for your time anthony

I missed this post, so here is my two pennyworth. Sorry to upset anyone but pic one is not Roman greyware, greyware is generally made from clay that is grey in it's natural state. Yours has a red or pink interior with a grey surface, this is a result of a lead or clay slip being used and would fit in with the date of the castle mid-medieval. (But could be Roman severn valley ware)
Pic two is difficult and would need a better photograph. is it pottery or stone? from what I can see it reminds me of a type of Opus Signinum (Roman) that has been moulded.
Pic 3 looks too fine for Iron Age pottery, but the good news is that it is very similar to comb-impressed Grooved ware belonging to the Beaker culture from the early Bronze Age.
But as Paul has said seeing them in the flesh is what is really needed, definitely worth showing to an FLO though.

thanks for the opinions lads,heres a few more different angles of them if it helps

first 2 his the bit of pottery from castle and 3rd photo which i found on a roman fort which is now a football parl, it hisnt pottery but some sort of brick

I am no pottery expert but pretty good with shadows that your hands are making on the wall behind.

The first looks like a turkey
the second looks like a rabbit
the third looks like a snakes head

LOL

Wayne

ROFLMAO :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D
Brilliant Wayno, priceless.

good one lads hahhaha
on my kids lives i didnt even notice them.
they seem to be easier to make out than the pottery though

Hi bassman i have found a roman polden hill type brooch up at morlais last year 1st AD ok mate