Samian ware

American  

noun

1. a red-glazed terracotta pottery produced in Gaul and the Moselle Valley a.d. 100–300 and copied from Arretine ware.

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Samian ware British  

noun

1. a fine earthenware pottery, reddish-brown or black in colour, found in large quantities on Roman sites

2. Also called: Arretine ware.  the earlier pottery from which this developed, an imitation of a type of Greek pottery, made during the first century _bc at Arretium

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Etymology

Origin of Samian ware

First recorded in 1835–45; after classical references to a type of pottery produced at Samos, perhaps an imitation of the red-glazed ware produced in Gaul and Italy

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Samian ware

Fragments of Samian ware and carved marble have been found in them, but are probably later than the construction of these habitations.

From Castles and Cave Dwellings of Europe by S. (Sabine) Baring-Gould

Sometime, however, Theo, you should go to one of our museums and see some Samian ware, the finest of Roman clay work.

From The Story of Porcelain by Sara Ware Bassett

The great quantity of pottery found may be judged by the fact that upwards of 900 potters' stamps on Samian ware have been recorded.

From The Towns of Roman Britain by James Oliver Bevan

Some fragments of Samian ware, coins, and a bronze and silver metal vessel have been found in Bossens, a camp in St Erth, and the head of an ensign at St Just.

From Cornwall by S. (Sabine) Baring-Gould

It must be remembered that the Romans possessed no fine porcelain decorated with lively colours and a beautiful glaze; Samian ware was the most decorative kind of pottery which was then made.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 1 "Gichtel, Johann" to "Glory" by Various