The ancient Romans called this material Opus Signinum, a Latin term which derived from the city of Segni (Signa) near Rome where, according to ancient sources, the material was invented. In the first century B.C. the Roman architect Vitruvius described its use in his treatise “De Architectura”. The ancient mixture was used to line cisterns, thermal water tanks, uncovered terraces, and impluvia (the apertures in the middle of courtyards for draining of rainwater) when they were not made from marble or stone, heated rooms etc. It was also used as a de-humidifying plaster.
The techniques for applying it for the various purposes for which it was used determined the level of permeability. Amphorae are an important part of the archaeological discoveries of Phoenician and Roman cargo ships, and they occupy a big place in our imagination. They were used to transport and store goods and foodstuffs, especially olive oil and wine.
Ancient Mediterranean civilizations mostly used clay for furniture and tableware, and these terracotta amphorae, were optimized for transport, and also used for storage. The Phoenicians already fermented in clay recipients buried in the earth, and later the Greeks and subsequently the Romans continued with this technique. The Romans used spherical terracotta containers called dolia (singular dolium). There are, also numerous important findings in the area of current-day Georgia where jars of larger dimensions with a capacity of thousands of litters were buried in spaces used for making wine.
