aic and Roman periods,
when the new style of glaze came into general use. A yellowish green
effect was obtained by glazing parts of the body of the vases in yellow
and covering this with the translucent blue glaze. This method was used
to touch up the salient portions of the designs in relief, imitated
from foreign originals, a style which now became usual on vases. The
usual decoration is mixed Egyptian and classical, the latter generally
predominating. A large range of colours was employed; purple, dark blue,
blue-green, grass-green, and yellow glazes all being found. The glaze is
very thickly laid on, and is often "crazed" (6, 8). A remarkable
instance of this Romano-Egyptian faience is the head of the god Bes in
the British Museum (No. 35,028). A hard, light blue, opaque glaze like
that of the XXVIth Dynasty is occasionally, but rarely, met with in the
case of vases (British Museum, Nos. 37,407, 37,408).

We know something of the common wares in use during this period from the
study of the _ostraka_, fragments of pottery on which dated
tax-receipts, notes, and so forth were written. From the _ostraka_ we
see that during the Ptolemaic period the commonest pottery was made of
red ware covered with white slip, which has already been mentioned. At
the beginning of the Roman period we find at Elephantine a peculiar
light pink ware with a brownish pink face, and elsewhere a smooth dark
brown ware. About the 3rd century A.D. horizontally ribbed or fluted
pots, usually of a coarse brown ware, came into general use. These were
often large-sized _amphorae_, with very attenuated necks and long
handles (see fig. 9). During the Byzantine (Coptic) period most of the
pottery in use was ribbed, and usually pitched inside to hold water, as
the ware was loose in texture and porous.

During the Coptic period, a lighter ware was also in use, decorated with
designs of various kinds in white, brown or red paint on the dull red or
buff body. In Nubia a peculiar development of this ware is
characteristic of the later period (Brit. Mus. No. 30,712).

A polished red ware of Roman origin (imitation Arretine or "Samian") was
commonly used as well.

The heavily glazed blue faience continued in use until replaced in the
early Arab period by the well-known yellow and brown lead-glazed
pottery, of which fragments are found in the mounds of Fostat (Old
Cairo).

[Illustration: FIG. 9.--Egyptian pottery under the Ptolemies, showing
Greek influe