Abstract
p. 387
Texte intégral
1In 1991, rescue excavations in Sainte-Barbe, a north-eastern neighbourhood of the medieval city of Marseilles, revealed the remains of a potter’s quarter which had been preserved on a 600 m2 surface as the area had been covered by gardens since the XVth century. Situated some hundred metres from the city-wall, on the site of a greco-roman necropolis and of living-quarters from the late Antiquity, the Bourg des Olliers was created by the turn of the XIIIth century, i.e., late comtal era (phase 1) as shown by the coinage. Its location, on a hill limitated by the Saint-Martin Vale, near the city gate Portal de la Frache and close to the main aqueduct, is confirmed by written sources as early as 1264. Later texts show that it belonged to the jurisdiction of the bishopric. Under the reign of Charles I of Anjou, the earliest installations are modified (phase 2A) and the quarter extends towards the North. The houses which had progressively been deserted by the potters (phase 2B) are reoccupied in the first third of the XIVth century by blacksmiths and coral craftsmen (phase 3). The destruction of this extra-muros quarter is ordered by the city council in the middle of the XIVth century for security reasons. The area which is no longer built turns into waste ground and finally into gardens in the XVIth century (phase 4). In the XVIIth century (phase 5), new constructions grew along the pathways. After the urban reorganization of the area following Louis XIV’s wishes, and the building of a charitable institution, I’Hospice des Incurables, very few changes have taken place until present days. Stratigraphy clearly shows us the evolution and the structuration of the quarter. Its life is also richly documentated by the findings: ceramics, glassware, everyday life objects, coins and fauna.
2The potter’s quarter is organized into regular construction plots perpendicular to a central lane, and is constructed in a mixture of stone (thresholds and doors) and mud (cross wall) architecture. Open spaces, such as a courtyard with a large well, surrounded the built areas. The houses, with tile-covered roofs, contained various production activities following an west-east orientation. In each elongated plot there are areas with numerous pits and little basins which may have been used for preparation of the clay, and shaping of the pots. The evidence concerning these simple structures is slight and the tool findings are rare. The installations for the preparation of glazes or for the firing of the ceramics are better preserved. Altogether, 9 small pottery kilns have been found. Their organization and orientation have changed during the life of the workshop. The earliest ones, dug out in the ground, are cylindrically shaped, without vault, with vertical fire way, central pillar and radiant arches supporting the hearth. One of them has an interior stone lining whereas another has a wall lining of undulating clay. One of the kilns is quite exceptional: it has neither pillar, nor intermediate floor, the clay coated internal wall of its firing chamber is pierced with holes in which cylindrical clay rods (bars) have been stuck. This type of kiln is well known all around the Mediterranean, and in the Near-East. Although it was modified quite early, its presence in Marseilles from the foundation of the workshop credits the hypothesis of a technological transfer. All the kilns had gone through reparations before being destroyed and filled up, allowing the installation of new ones. These are built upon the old kilns in a different orientation, using clay bricks, and may have had a vault.
3Three small kilns for the preparation of glazes and oxides give us new data for the understanding of a specific savoir-faire. The oldest one was used for the preparation of lead, and perhaps of copper. The installation was made up of a miniature kiln with an earth basin nearby, into which the oxydated metal was poured. This installation was abandoned at the same time as the early kilns and was replaced by two small rectangular brick kilns. One of them has a conception close to reverbere kilns, with the hearth slightly below thus reflecting the heat towards the vault, and may have been used for the preparation of tin; the other one, of a complex structure and situated nearby small melting-pots full of copper, and stills, show the kind of research spirit that prevailed in these workshops. The rich documentation concerning these activities indeed renews the history of technics but does not shed any light upon the socio-economic structures of these workshops, whereas written sources could perhaps clarify some of these aspects.
4The productions of this urban workshop belong to a culture which is foreign to the area. Contrary to the contemporary grey ceramics produced further inland, the Marseilles productions are fired in an oxidizing atmosphere and are covered by a lead glaze, or a tin glaze sometimes decorated in green and brown. These productions have been well identified through the presence of numerous wasters discarded in abandoned kilns or in street fills. Sorting of hundreds of thousands of shards have allowed the caracterizing and classification of productions according to various categories of clay and glazes. These groups have been validated through geochemical or petrographical analysis. As a whole, the repertoire of shapes within each category confirms the correlation clay/shape/function. The catalogue gives a review of the various types produced during the lifetime of the workshop. Shard-count allows us to observe the frequence of various types and to perceive the distribution of productions by space or by phase.
5The permanent variety in the producion of the workshop corresponds to the daily needs of an urban population. Around fifty different shapes are used in kitchenware, tableware, stocking, lighting and for various other purposes. À red siliceous clay is mainly used for kitchen- and tableware but is also used for lamps and other particular objects. This lead-glazed production quickly disappears and is not to be found in phase 2B. The stills and the melting-pots are made of heat-resistant clay. The main part of the calcareous clay production comes from local deposits used by the ceramists since Antiquity. It represents 80 % of the whole production and comprises unglazed biscuits (90 %), monochrome tin-glazed ware (9 %), and tin-glazed painted in green and brown (1 %). The great amount of biscuits comprises vessels ment to remain without glazing and those intended to receive glazing during a second firing. The tin-glazed production remains rather exceptional although it totalizes 10 % of the calcareous production.
6Analysis of the glazes confirm the use of tin in the monochrome glazes and reveal the presence of antimony. Yellow is also used for the decorations. Tin-glaze is used for tableware and also for lamps and tiles. During the early activities of the workshop, vases for liquids are covered with a monochrome glaze on the exterior, except the Andalusian style green and brown aquamanile. The decoration style found on the bowls evoke North-Africa as well Sicily. In the second phase, the geometric patterns already correspond to the decorative style of Languedoc or of Provence in the late XIIIth and the XIVth centuries. The same evolution is to be seen within the shapes. The first tableware which recalls a Mediterranean atmosphere will be replaced by newer shapes also to be found in the regional productions. This evolution has been summarized in charts. The geographical extension of the Marseilles production does not exceed some hundred kilometers. The recent discoveries have proved that the city itself is the main consumer of its goods.
7For the history of Mediterranean faiences, this early workshop, with its ephemeral destiny may be compared to a similar attempt in Liguria. The types of wares produced as well as the techniques used show an obvious relationship with the Islamic Mediterranean world. This hypothesis is reinforced by the presence of a kiln using Islamic technology which points to travelling about of ceramic models as well as of craftsmen. The transmission of the savoir-faire itself seems to have been assimilated quite rapidly by the local craftsmen. In a period of crisis, the Marseillan workshop may not have been able to cope with the competition of the city of Avignon. The craftsmen may have joined this new market or any of the other Languedocian production centres.
8The annex indexes discoveries or eventual clues concerning kilns using clay rods (or bars) all around the Mediterranean and in the Middle-East, from the Xth century til present times. This diachronical investigation allows a better understanding of a complexe firing technique which has disappeared in the West.
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