Stamped Plate.

Part of foot and floor.

Ring foot. Stamp on floor, not centered: ligature of the letters ΘΕΟΥ in oval field. Light brown fabric (7.5YR 6/4) with very little mica; metallic black glaze.

Vessels stamped Θ, ΘΕ, and ΘΕΩΝ are known from Samothrace (Samothrace II, ii, nos. 98--102, 113, pp. 70--71, 74; McCredie 1965, pp. 115--116, pl. 35:a, b). The practice of stamping these letters during production begins there in the 5th century and continues throughout the 4th and 3rd centuries; it is not attested elsewhere. It is thought that these vessels were specially ordered from the manufacturer for use in rituals at the site (Samothrace II, ii, pp. 22, 32). Our stamp may identify the piece as the property of a single divinity and thus apparently not destined for Samothrace; it may then constitute evidence for another sanctuary that followed the same practice. Alternatively, it may be a casual stamp taken from a ring bezel; cf. 690.