A Greek Stamp on an Imitation Rhodian Amphora from the Dava at Popeşti (Jud. Giurgiu, South-Eastern Romania) and Its Relevance for the Hellenistic Influence in the North-Thracian Hinterland

Abstract

A Greek Stamp on an Imitation Rhodian Amphora from the Dava at Popeşti (Jud. Giurgiu, South-Eastern Romania) and Its Relevance for the Hellenistic Influence in the North-Thracian Hinterland

This paper discusses a unique piece: a handle fragment of an imitation Rhodian transport amphora with a stamp with a Rhodian name written in Greek letters, found in the Getic dava at Popeşti (jud. Giurgiu, south-eastern Romania). It has been long known that imitations of Hellenistic (primarily Rhodian) transport amphorae were produced in the North-Thracian hinterland. Nevertheless, their stamps are anepigraphic, more suitable for a world where only exceptional people could read. Recently, it was argued that north of the Danube, Aegean grapevines were acclimatised and a local wine industry – based both on acclimatised as well as local grapes – was developed – a unique phenomenon in the Barbarian world. Considering the aforementioned piece in the wider context of its discovery, this paper argues that it resulted from a Rhodian working among the Getae in the local wine industry. This in turn indicates that the Hellenistic influence was not limited to the occasional production of the bling exhibited by the elites in social competition, as previously believed, but also extended to the development of the local economy.