LEVANT 38 2006 Pp. 159–170 159 Planting pots at Petra: a preliminary study of ollae perforatae at the Petra Garden Pool Complex and at the ‘Great Temple’ Elizabeth R. Macaulay-Lewis St. John’s College, Oxford OX 1 3JP UK, Elizabeth.macaulay@sjc.ox.ac.uk In June 2005, I conducted a survey of pottery from the Petra Garden and Pool Complex and the Petra ‘Great Temple’ to determine if there were any ollae perforatae, or planting pots, in use at these sites. M y study demonstrated that planting pots were indeed present. In addition to my study of the pottery from past seasons, the ongoing excavations at both the Petra Garden and Pool Complex and the Petra ‘Great Temple’ yielded ollae perforatae. In this note, I will describe the known ollae perforatae and offer preliminary conclusions about the pots. Introduction to Ollae perforatae (planting pots) Dr. Leigh-Ann Bedal’s (2004) excavations of the Petra Garden and Pool Complex (herewith referred to as the Petra Garden/PGPC) have heightened scholarly awareness of the importance of gardens at Petra. The presence of ollae perforatae is further evi- dence for the existence of gardens at Petra. Ollae perforatae are purpose-made planting pots. According to the ancient sources, these vessels were used for the aerial layering of trees and the trans- portation of plants and saplings (Plin., NH , 12.16; 17.11.64; 17.21.97–8; Cato, De A gri. , 52; 113). They were also used in Roman gardens and are found at sites across the Roman world in Greece, England, France, Italy, and the West Bank (Thompson 1937; Cunliffe 1971; Jashemski 1979; Jashemski 1992; Messenio 1984; Barat and Morize 1999; Villedieu 2001; Zachos 2003; Macaulay in press; forthcoming). They provide excellent evi- dence for the ancient gardens, whose plants do not typically survive, and the design of these gardens. The archaeologically known pots date from the first century BC to the mid second century AD . Cato the Elder mentions their presence in his De A gricultura, which was written in the mid second century BC ; however, no pots have yet been discovered from this earlier period. Ollae perforatae Types at Petra The major features — the base and side holes, shape of the vessel’s body, the rim shape, fabric, and size — enable the establishment of a typology for ollae perforatae in order to analyze their role in the gardens at Petra. Ollae perforatae can be studied by both their form and fabric. They are identified by their distinc- tive, single base hole, which was purposefully placed for the drainage and aeration of a plant’s roots. Sometimes the pots also had intentionally placed side holes. At Petra, the pots are best classified first by form and, second, by fabric. The side and base holes are typically placed before firing. Nine fragmentary ollae perforatae have been iden - tified at the Petra Garden, and ten fragmentary ollae perforatae have been identified at the Petra ‘Great Temple’ (herewith referred to as the ‘Great Temple’/ PGT). Of these nineteen fragmentary ollae perfo - ratae , eighteen fall into the group which I identified as Type A, and one pot was identified as Type B. Type A Eighteen examples of the Type A ollae perforatae have been found at the Petra Garden and the ‘Great Temple’. The vessel shape of the Petra Type A olla perforata is a variation on the common Nabataean cup or vase. The Nabataean cup is small and ovoid in form, and it has exterior and interior ridges. At least nine complete examples of this cup type were found in the ‘cistern’ of the ‘Great Temple’ (Bestock 1999, 243; Fig. 5). These cups date to the first cen- tury AD . The cup’s height (8.2 cm) is similar to that of the ollae perforatae (Bestock 1999, 243, Fig. 5). The cups had a slip on their exteriors. All of the Petra Type A pots have distinctive wheel ridges on the interior and exterior. They have