Having 5 or 6
lamps of my own, I've tried to learn a
bit about them reading around. From what I gather, a
good part of the available
lamps on sale today are funerary
lamps, made to be interred with the dead, and never to be used (or maybe just only once). These are usually small and crude, and have been preserved, presumably, by being underground almost since their creation.
I bought a small booklet, Greek and
Roman Pottery Lamps, by
Donald M.
Bailey, in which the author explains the 3 main uses of
lamps in
antiquity: "domestic or commercial illumination, funerary function, and
votive use". He explains about the
lamps placed in tombs that "many seem to be unused: there is no sign of blackening around the wick-hole".
Now, being no expert at all (thus, cannot confirm or deny authenticity), yours looks like it would fit this
type of use. In any case, Mr
Bailey states that "the poorer people (used) common wheel-made or mould-made
lamps". If yours is mould-made in industrial quantities for
cheap offerings, that would explain the lack of detail.
Well, don't know if any of this helps, but as I've been eager to know more about
Roman lamps myself, I thought I'd share this.
Regards,
Ignasi