Roman London Research Articles

Broken Deities: The Pipe-Clay Figurines from Roman London

ABSTRACTPipe-clay figurines are an important but under-examined category of Roman material culture in Britain. This paper presents the first typological catalogue of the 168 deity, animal and human figures imported to Roman London from Gaul during the first and second centuriesa.d. As in many other collections Venus figurines are the most common type, although there is considerable diversity in form. Comparison with continental collections highlights distinctive patterns of consumption between London, the rest of Britain and Gaul, with the city displaying relatively high numbers of exotic/unusual types, as appears to be typical ofLondiniumin general. The spatial distribution of the figurines is mapped across the settlement, while their contexts and social distribution on habitation, trade and religious sites throughout the city are explored. Whole specimens from burials and subtle patterns of fragmentation also provide a direct insight into the religious beliefs and symbolic practices of the people of Roman London.

Reconstructing the Roman London flavourscape: new insights into the exotic food plant trade using network and spatial analyses

Using archaeobotanical data and examining them with a novel combination of density interpolation surfaces and social and spatial network analyses, this study has brought together exotic food plants in Roman London to outline the changing ‘face’ of its flavourscape, and contextualise it within the broader exotics commerce in Britannia. Consumption of a variety of exotics appeared to be widespread since the very first stages of London's establishment and their presence was maintained throughout although later on, as life in the town developed and its character changed, the focus of their distribution also changed. The emphasis shifted from the core of the city in its early days towards its outer zones, such as the upper Walbrook valley and Southwark in the Middle Roman, and the western and eastern sectors in the Late Roman phase. These changes appeared to largely reflect the changes in the overall commerce network of exotics in Britannia. In this network London starts as a mainly consumption place in the Early Roman phase to become the main redistribution centre in the Middle Roman and the necessary intermediate node in the transport system that had been established by the Late Roman phase, connecting the south to the north.

With Criminal Intent? Forgers at Work in Roman London

AbstractOver 800 clay coin moulds, excavated from 85 London Wall in 1988, had been used for casting copies of silver denarii and copper-alloy dupondii and asses which dated from Trajan to Trebonianus Gallus. The discovery of the moulds in the ditch ofLondinium's defensive wall led initially to thoughts that this was the concealment of incriminating evidence, but it is now recognised that counterfeiting coins was rife and perhaps even uncontrollable. The wide variety of moulds made it a complicated task to identify the numbers and types of coins used to make the moulds. This article describes the types of moulds found, examines how the moulds were produced, and discusses the prevalence of coin moulds at differing periods and on differing sites in Roman Britain and on the Continent.

Pompeian Red Ware in Roman London: Insights on Pottery Consumption in Colonial Environments

Pompeian Red Ware in Roman London: Insights on Pottery Consumption in Colonial Environments

Headhunting and amphitheatre combat in Roman London, England: new evidence from the Walbrook Valley

In 1988, the disarticulated human remains of forty Roman individuals were discovered at 52-63 London Wall, London. Examination of the sample using techniques employed by forensic anthropology and entomology found that some of the material had been deposited in open waterlogged pits. The majority of the sample were adult males who had evidence for multiple peri-mortem blunt- and sharp- force injuries; many also had healed injuries, suggesting that violence was a common feature of their life. Despite the fact that this material was recovered from an industrial area in the upper Walbrook Valley of London, the evidence for trauma, their context and associated archaeological and environmental evidence reveals that these deposits are markedly different from other published examples of human remains from the Walbrook stream and River Thames, and may represent the remains of headhunting by the Roman army and/or defeated gladiators.

GOLD GLASS TESSERAE SAID TO BE FROM THE ROMAN VILLA SITE AT SOUTHWICK, WEST SUSSEX

This paper seeks to characterise through elemental analysis some unusual gold glass tesserae said to have been found at a Roman villa site in Southwick, West Sussex. The site is no longer accessible, being underneath a Methodist chapel, but it has been excavated, to some extent, on several occasions. Glass tesserae are not common in a British setting but they are by no means unusual in Roman mosaics. Gold glass tesserae, however, in which gold leaf is sandwiched between two layers of glass, are very unusual: fewer than twenty such tesserae are known from Roman Britain and the seven examples from Southwick make up the largest single group. However, the provenance of these Southwick tesserae remains doubtful and so they were analysed and compared to gold glass tesserae from Roman London to try and establish whether they are compositionally related to typical Roman glass. For comparative reasons, the handful of coloured glass tesserae from Southwick were also analysed. Our results suggest that the tesserae said to be from Southwick are anomalous in relation to the other material and cannot be assigned to the Roman period.

The Discovery of the Roman Fort at Cripplegate, City of London, Based upon the Records from Excavations by W.F. Grimes for the Roman and Mediaeval London Excavation Council 1947–68. By J. Shepherd . Museum of London Archaeology, London, 2012. Pp. xiii + 176, illus (some colour). Price: £11.00. isbn 978 1 907586 08 8.

The Discovery of the Roman Fort at Cripplegate, City of London, Based upon the Records from Excavations by W.F. Grimes for the Roman and Mediaeval London Excavation Council 1947–68. By J. Shepherd . Museum of London Archaeology, London, 2012. Pp. xiii + 176, illus (some colour). Price: £11.00. isbn 978 1 907586 08 8. - Volume 44

REIMAGINING ROMAN PORTS AND HARBOURS: THE PORT OF ROMAN LONDON AND WATERFRONT ARCHAEOLOGY

This paper explores some theoretically informed ways in which to use the rich evidence relating to ports, harbours and other waterfront installations in archaeology. It argues that studies of waterfront structures within the specialisms of nautical/maritime and wetland archaeology are extremely important in their own right, but they could also be used to explore broader issues connected with their use and context. These include the cultural and religious significance of water and its dangers, the symbolic significance of landscape change, the relationship between people and their environment and the negotiation of the land/water interface. Examining the evidence of the port of Roman London as a case study, this paper explores the archaeology in its local setting and addresses a number of subjects relating to both its temporal and spatial position. It focuses on the religious significance of water and the implications of altering waterscapes through artificial construction.

Two studies on Roman London. A: London's military origins. B: Population decline and ritual landscapes in Antonine London.

Two studies on Roman London. A: London's military origins. B: Population decline and ritual landscapes in Antonine London.

New Light on the End of Roman London

The end of Roman London has too often been discussed using models that are poorly rooted in empirical evidence. This paper utilizes data from archives and commercial contractors to plot the distribution of activity in London at the end of the fourth century. This challenges the notion that much of the Late Roman city was deserted. However, a brief consideration of Early AngloSaxon London and Southwark demonstrates that by the late fifth century the City and Southwark were abandoned.

Childhood Health in the Roman World: Perspectives from the Centre and Margin of the Empire

Very few studies to date have presented contextualised interpretations of bioarchaeological evidence from Roman urban environments. This paper compares and contrasts the osteological data for childhood health from two urban centres, one at the centre and the other at the margins of the Roman Empire – Rome and London. We synthesise recently published and newly recorded data on childhood indicators of physiological stress (e.g. cribra orbitalia and enamel hypoplasias) from both sites. Contrary to expectations, we find that the prevalence of these stress indicators is comparable between sites. In order to contextualise these findings we compare the results to published data from other sites of the same period (from both rural and urban locales) within the respective countries. We find that the data from London is anomalous for Roman Britain, while that from Rome is similar to findings from contemporaneous Italian sites. We interpret these findings in terms of child-rearing practices, the local living environment and high levels of migration into Roman London from Mediterranean regions.

Mapping the Roman Inscriptions of London

This paper examines the corpus of over 500 Roman inscriptions from London by studying them as a unique category of archaeological find, one with data relating to the object, the inscription, and the find-spot. The author uses information published in the fascicules of Roman Inscriptions of Britain and in Britannia and links this data to maps of Roman London created for The Archaeology of Greater London (2000). Evidence for ‘zoning’ within Roman London is considered by comparing official and private inscriptions. Inscriptions suggesting retail activity are examined, as are the types of inscription found in London's waterfronts, which are used to suggest different areas of specialism within London's port. Finally, the paper looks at the inscriptions written by men and women, and by citizens and non-citizens.

Alterations without Attendance

The history of hydraulic engineering is enmeshed inextricably with the history of medicine and health, as well as with the welfare of society. Since the days of ancient Greece, the provision of safe, convenient, and reliable water has been central to the endeavors of engineers and doctors. The earliest hydraulic engineering for which records survive was that of the great aqueduct on the Greek island of Samos; and the first known hydraulic engineer was its builder, Eupalinus of Megara. The Greeks also invented the siphon to lift flowing water over intervening heights. During the second century BC, the Greek engineer Ctesibius was interested in the pressure differential so obtained. Roman engineers subsequently developed the skills of aqueduct construction and systems of distribution. The Aqua Appia, built in 312 BC and 16.5 km long, and the Aqua Anio Vetus, built in 272 BC, are the earliest known Roman aqueducts. The Aqua Marcia, which was built in 144 BC, was the first Roman aqueduct to be carried partly on bridges and in tunnels. These supplied saliens or street fountains , lacus or public basins , and balneae or public and private baths . The Roman military engineer Vitruvius Pollio ca. 20–26 BC 10-folio work, De Architectura, the eighth book of which concerned water supply. The next advance in hydraulic engineering was the construction of water-lifting machinery to replenish those reservoirs not fed naturally by gravity. The kinetic energy of flowing water to lift water itself was the first such force harnessed. These machines evolved from bucket-wheels operated by humans or by animals. The saqiya, or Persian wheel, first recorded in Mesopotamia, consisted of buckets attached to the circumference of a wheel that scooped, lifted, and then discarded water at a level higher than the primary stream. The waterwheel used a three-stage energy transfer—kinetic to mechanical to gravitational energy. More sophisticated water-lifting wheels and screws were recorded in the literature of Roman times, including water-lifting machines in Roman London. The dream of inventing an engine that would work continuously, without input from an intermediate waterwheel—or from heat, animal, or human power—had long been the holy grail of inventors, mathematicians, and engineers.

Wells and Bucket-Chains: Unforeseen Elements of Water Supply in Early Roman London

ABSTRACTExcavations by MoLAS at 30 Gresham Street and 12 Arthur Street in the City of London in 2001 have led to a complete reassessment of the provision of Roman London’s water supply. Four massive first- and second-century wells contained remains of two types of mechanical water-lifting machines or bucket-chain systems. The discoveries allowed identification of a similar bucket-chain from the Cheapside Roman baths, found 50 years earlier by Ivor Noël Hume of the Guildhall Museum. Archaeological and engineering analysis has revealed the water-lifting capacity of the machines, which could have supplied a significant proportion of the town’s population with clean water.

Recording Roman London - Nicholas J. Elsden Excavations at 25 Cannon Street, City of London: from the Middle Bronze Age to the Great Fire (Museum of London Archaeology Service Archaeology Studies Ser. 5). x+74 pages, 51 figures, 17 tables. 2002. London: Museum of London Archaeology Service; 1-901992-22-5 paperback £7.95. - Elizabeth Howe. Roman defences and medieval industry: excavations at Baltic

Recording Roman London - Nicholas J. Elsden Excavations at 25 Cannon Street, City of London: from the Middle Bronze Age to the Great Fire (Museum of London Archaeology Service Archaeology Studies Ser. 5). x+74 pages, 51 figures, 17 tables. 2002. London: Museum of London Archaeology Service; 1-901992-22-5 paperback £7.95. - Elizabeth Howe. Roman defences and medieval industry: excavations at Baltic

'The Girl in Question': A New Text from Roman London

'The Girl in Question': A New Text from Roman London

A Romano-British Cemetery on Watling Street: Excavations at 165 Great Dover Street, Southwark, London

Excavations in 1996-7 at Great Dover Street, Southwark, uncovered evidence of a Roman roadside cemetery on Watling Street, south-east of the settlement. The cemetery was established in the mid 2nd century, replacing a roadside building and contemporary field system, and has yielded the largest number of Roman burials (twenty-five inhumations and five cremations) yet discovered on one site in Southwark. With two walled cemeteries, a mausoleum, and a possible temple-mausoleum, the site is an important addition to the study of Roman London. Moulded cornices and the head of a god or river deity were also found. A bustum within the cemetery area contained the cremated remains of a female with at least nine pottery tazze, eight pottery lamps, and an exceptional array of plant remains, many imported from the Mediterranean, including stone pine, white almond and date fruit. Images on the lamps included the Egyptian god Anubis, and a fallen gladiator. The funerary structures fell into disrepair by the late 3rd century, although there was some evidence that the area may have continued as an unenclosed cemetery.

The Sepulchral Monument of the Procurator C. Julius Classicianus

The evidence for an altar tomb of the Procurator of Britain, C. Julius Classicianus, consists of a richly carved bolster stone and two substantial lettered fragments, found at the foot of a Roman bastion of London's city wall during two excavations separated in time by eighty years. Reunited. at the British Museum in 1935, they form one of the most important and beautifully lettered archaeological documents of Roman London. The purpose of this study is to reassess the information contained in the worked faces of each fragment, to review the assumptions which led to the disposition of the fragments in their present setting, and to consider whether a measured survey of lettering and layout might contribute to a fuller reconstruction of the tomb and its text.

Academic Feud, Bloodfeud, and William Welwood: Legal Education in St Andrews, 1560–1611-Part I

This article, in earlier versions presented as a paper to the Edinburgh Roman Law Group on 10 December 1993 and to the joint meeting of the London Roman Law Group and London Legal History Seminar on 7 February 1997, addresses the puzzle of the end of law teaching in the Scottish universities at the start of the seventeenth century at the very time when there was strong pressure for the advocates of the Scots bar to have an academic education in Civil Law. It demonstrates that the answer is to be found in the life of William Welwood, the last Professor of Law in St Andrews, while making some general points about bloodfeud in Scotland, the legal culture of the sixteenth century, and the implications of this for Scottish legal history. It is in two parts, the second of which will appear in the next issue of the Edinburgh Law Review.

English Heritage Book of Roman London

English Heritage Book of Roman London