Find Spot record MDR11280 - Alleged Anglo-Saxon accessory vessel, Chester Green, Derby

A small hand-made pot was given to the author many years ago. Stuck to the body of the pot was a label saying 'Chester Green, Little Chester', and at the time the vessel was found this would undoubtedly refer to the recreation ground which lies to the south-east of the Roman fort of Derventio, but when, and in what circumstances the find was made is not known. The vessel is 8.0 cms in diameter, 9.5 cms high (Fig. 1), and of an orange fabric. There are two embryonic' handles, one on either side of the neck, and a line-and-dot incised decoration on the shoulder. Dr J N L Myres is of the opinion that it is a late-sixth/seventh century Anglo-Saxon accessory vessel. (1) This vessel has been re-examined. The form and decoration of the pot are not at all Anglo-Saxon in character and suggest an ethnographic origin; the fabric, which contains micro schist, is certainly exotic. (2)