1,600-year-old Roman jar workshop found in Israel

Archaeologists have discovered a 1,600-year-old Roman pot factory in northern Israel, the Israel antiquities authority said in a statement on Wednesday.

It was exposed in archaeological excavations ahead of the construction of a new residential quarter in the town of Shlomi.

The antiquities authority said the ancient workshop features some unique elements. "The kiln, used to fire the jars, is the only one known to date in the country to have been hewn entirely in bedrock," it said in a statement.

"The kiln was meticulously constructed," said Joppe Gosker, excavation director.

"It consisted of two chambers -- one a firebox in which branches were inserted for burning, and a second chamber where the pottery vessels were placed that were fired in the scorching heat that was generated," the director said.

According to Anastasia Shapiro, a geologist with the excavation expedition, the features of the rare can be explained by the special geological conditions found in the area of Shlomi.

"Here there is chalk bedrock, which on the one hand is soft and therefore easily quarried, and on the other is sufficiently strong to endure the intense heat," she said. Endit