Graffiti, wine selling, and the reuse of amphoras in the Athenian Agora, ca.430 to 400 B.C.

Graffiti on transport amphoras of the 5th century B.C. record volume, weigh t, price and abbreviations that may refer to the jar's contents. The graffi ti often appear in the southeast corner of the Agora excavations. While som e price marks may have been applied outside Athens, many graffiti resulted from retail practices in the Agora, such as refilling jars from local suppl iers, decanting from jars in the ship, and selling different products such as honey and meat. Most of the graffiti date between 430 and 400 B.C. Polit ical and economic conditions at this time encouraged the use of graffiti on an unprecedented scale.