Dishes in Medieval Oxford

The plate is an important part of any meal, the centerpiece of the modern table, however, dishes were used earlier on as well. A dish is usually a shallow piece with taller more vertical walls than a standard plate. I suppose you could compare it to dog food dishes of today in some cases.

This example below is from the Ashmolean Museum:



*Common Name Early Medieval Oxford ware
*Class Dish
*Height 56-65mm
*Identifier PW45
*Production centre dispersed industry to the north west of Oxford
*Distribution local
*Use baking and preparation of food
*Date Late 12th - early 13th century AD
*Published in Mellor in Allen 1994, Fig 70 no 1, 328
*Historic context ditch in rural hamlet

In the Period, plates had multiple uses. They weren't just to sit on a table, but more to be used in preparation of cooking or also used in the process of baking.