The bowl in which the birds bathed turned out to be a 2000-year-old Roman vessel – a mortarium. Such information comes to us from Alcester, England.
Alcester resident Ray Taylor came across a clay pot in his garden a few years ago. The man decided to use the bowl as a “bathtub” for the birds. When his daughter went to the Roman exhibition at the “Globe House”, she noticed that her father’s vessel resembled the objects in the exhibition. Then she encouraged her father to show the subject to specialists.
As it turned out, the bowl dug out of the ground was a mortarium – a Roman vessel dating from the 2nd-3rd century CE. In Roman times it was used to grind herbs, spices and other ingredients, which were then added to expressive Roman sauces. Spices were usually added in large amounts to hide the stale meat.
The lucky finder, upon hearing of an important find, decided to return the item to the “Warwickshire Museum”.
