PATTERNS OF AMPHORA STAMP DISTRIBUTION 225
(Gabrielsen 1997 : 65–71; Rauh 1999 ; Lund 1999 ; Tzochev 2010 ; Lund 2011 ;
Lawall 2011a: 41–2).
In this last group of productions with the widest distribution and the largestvolume, it is obvious that we are dealing with well-organized export centers
with numerous trade links and an extensive trade network. Thasos, Cnidos and
Rhodes tend to reveal greater concentrations in certain areas, although at the
same time the universal dominance of the Rhodian class speaks for an excep-
tional production and exportation center.
Amphora Stamp Distribution and the Ancient Economy
Obviously, amphoras as transport jars, whether stamped or not, are closely
connected not only to potters, but also to various persons participating in the
production and the distribution of the goods transported in these jars. A wide
range of people, from landowners, workers and farmers to fishermen, middle-
men, distributors and buyers in wholesale or retail, but also various official
fiscal mechanisms are involved in this discussion (cf. Lawall 1998 : 73–4). But
we do not yet know for sure either the exact meaning(s) of the stamps or the
relationship between those who produced amphoras and those involved in
agricultural production. The data does not provide secure information about
the economic practices of individuals, their workshops or households. As a
result, the analysis of amphoras must remain at the level of poleis as production
centers in general.
For the four leading stamped amphora production centers, Rhodes,Cnidos, Cos and Thasos, as also for the immediately smaller category
(Acanthus, Chios, Ephesus, Corcyra, Mende and Paros), the wide-ranging
flow of stamps, that is, of stamped amphoras and their contents, clearly
points to an economy that has moved far beyond self-sufficiency. The
breadth of the distribution and the quantities of stamps attest to the exis-
tence of a dense network of transactions, totally different from what we
would assume for a closed society. Goods were regularly produced for
export and transported, for many generations, to numerous destinations
ranging from neighboring areas to distant locations. On the import side,
there were clearly a large number of markets for merchants to choose
among. The picture that emerges is one of a set of major cities export-
ing and importing on a regular basis, not of communities disposing of an
occasional surplus. Moreover, the concentrations of stamps of some of
these classes in certain regions offer valuable information for understand-
ing the specific reasons for exports and imports. These case studies offer
possibilities for a better understanding of the way markets and trading
routes were organized.
On the other hand, in the category of medium-size distribution (category2 ), the evidence for these twenty-one communities does not suggest regular