This paper presented the ceramic evidence for interaction between the Roman Red Sea and the Aksumite kingdom at sites involved in the exchange network between the Red Sea and India during c. late first century BC and sixth century AD. The Roman sites comprise Aila (Jordan), Myos Hormos and Berenike (Egypt); the Aksumite ones Adulis (Eritrea) and Aksum (Ethiopia). A range of handmade pottery vessels found on the Roman Red Sea belong stylistically to the Aksumite tradition and are distinct from Roman wares. Macroscopic and petrological examination revealed three main fabric groups that are geologically compatible with source areas in the region of Adulis and Aksum and whose distribution displays some chronological development, with the Aksum region becoming dominant during the late Roman period in keeping with its known floruit.