Roman feeding bottle

During weaning, give the child ‘water or a little watery wine through artificial teats…
Soranus, AD 1st -2nd century

These pottery vessels have puzzled researchers for decades. For a long time, it was thought they were used for cooking or to fill oil lamps. The discovery of milk traces inside some bottles means that it is now thought that at least some were used during weaning or to replace breast-feeding. An artificial teat was probably added to the spout, which would be difficult to keep germ-free.