The ceramic Roman mortarium is thick and heavy and has a broad rim to enable the cook to put some energy into grinding and bruising without fear of breakage. A section of the rim has been adapted to form a flat spout to enable the prepared herbs or spices to be poured out of the mortarium into another smaller container or jar. The mortarium was hand thrown, wide and deep enough for herbs and spices to be mixed energetically without spilling out. A pestle, a hand-held club-shaped tool, was used to grind and rub the herbs and spices around the bowl. Its inside is rough in surface texture to help the grinding process. This surface is created by using tiny sharp pieces of broken pot, which were pressed onto the wet clay before firing.
The Romans used lots of herbs and spices in their cooking, including cumin, coriander, sage, nutmeg, thyme, pepper and ginger. Fresh herbs are mainly leaves and twigs, and spices are hard, dry root or nut-like forms. In order to prepare these herbs and spices for cooking, the Romans had to break them down so that their flavours could be absorbed into the food. Spices have to be ground into a fine dust-like substance, and herbs bruised and crushed to release their flavours and scents. And it was mortarii, discovered in numerous households across Europe, that document the process of Romanization, the process that did not include only the spread of Roman material culture and trade with agricultural products, but also the diffusion of food-preparing technologies and most important the adoption of Mediterranean tastes.
Mortar ya Kirumi ya kauri ni nzito na nzito na ina ukingo mpana ili kumwezesha mpishi kutumia nishati fulani katika kusaga na kupasua bila kuogopa kuvunjika. Sehemu ya ukingo imebadilishwa ili kufanyiza mdomo wa gorofa ili kuruhusu mimea au viungo vilivyotengenezwa vimemwagika kutoka kwa mortar kwenye chombo kingine kidogo au chupa. Mortarium ilitupwa kwa mkono, na ilikuwa pana na yenye kina cha kutosha ili mimea na vikolezo viweze kuchanganywa kwa nguvu bila kuvuja. Kifaa cha kushikilia, kilichokuwa na umbo la fimbo, kilitumiwa kusaga na kutikisa mimea na vikolezo kuzunguka bakuli hilo. Ndani yake ni mbaya katika muundo wa uso kusaidia mchakato wa kusaga. Uso huo hutengenezwa kwa kutumia vipande vidogo vidogo vya sufuria vilivyovunjika, ambavyo vilifinyangwa kwenye udongo wenye unyevunyevu kabla ya kuchomwa. Waroma walitumia mimea na viungo vingi katika upishi wao, kutia ndani cumin, coriander, sage, nutmeg, thyme, pilipili na tangawizi. Mimea mipya ni majani na matawi hasa, na vikolezo ni ngumu, mizizi kavu au aina ya karanga. Ili kutayarisha mimea na viungo hivyo kwa ajili ya kupikia, Waroma walihitaji kuvivunja ili ladha zake ziweze kufyonzwa na chakula. Vikolezo vinapaswa kusaga na kufanyizwa kuwa vumbi, na mimea hupondwa na kusagwa ili kutoa ladha na harufu yake. "Hii ni mortar, ambayo iligunduliwa katika nyumba nyingi kote Ulaya, ambayo inadhibitisha mchakato wa Romanization, mchakato ambao haukujumuisha tu kuenea kwa utamaduni wa Kirumi wa vifaa na biashara na bidhaa za kilimo, lakini pia kuenea kwa teknolojia za kuandaa chakula na muhimu zaidi, kupitishwa kwa ladha ya Mediterania. """