Roman architectural elements in Malta : a typology and analysis of tiles and bricks in roman sites on the Maltese islands

Abstract

Ceramic building materials are not very widely studied in archaeology when compared to other fired clay assemblages, such as pottery vessels. The discipline would benefit from an increased frequency of typologies for ceramic building material, especially for assemblages on the Maltese islands. This study aimed to create a typology for the Roman ceramic tile and brick assemblage from the Żejtun Roman Villa site, and to use this typology to compare Żejtun types to those discovered on other sites on the Maltese islands and abroad. A literature review was conducted in order to identify different types from other sites, in order to provide comparisons to any types established from the Żejtun assemblage. 11 different types of Roman ceramic tile and brick were established for the Żejtun Roman Villa assemblage. These types were successfully compared to other types identified in the literature review, and their forms and potential uses discussed.