Middle byzantine glazed pottery from Larissa: the local production. Preliminary remarks

Larissa, strategically located on the major north-south road of the Greek peninsula, was the metropolis of Thessaly, its ecclesiastical and administrative centre during the Byzantine period. Rescue excavations conducted during the past years in various plots in the modern city yielded a large quantity of glazed pottery, the study of which resulted in some interesting remarks regarding the locally produced glazed ware during the 12th and the first half of the 13th century. So far, three workshops have been identified, operating in and outside the city walls. These new observations confirm the implications that Larissa was a centre for the production of glazed pottery in the broad frame of the Main Byzantine Production (MBP). Further research would detect the potential distribution of Larissa ceramics through commercial routes in the Byzantine world.