Ancient City Walls

This paper examines the recycling of funerary and architectural materials in the early 4th c. AD city-walls of Roman London and the South-East of England. Over 200 pieces of stone statuary survive from the region with a significant proportion of this material having been recycled into the late Roman city-walls of London. Two major sections of the city-walls incorporate recycled material: the external towers at Trinity Place, Bevis Marks, Castle Street, Crosswall, Goring Street and Camomile Street and the lower courses of part of the riverside wall. These re-used elements have been recently published as the Corpus Signorum Imperii Romani GB vol. I, fascicule 10. 
While the external towers predominately incorporated funerary monuments, the recycled elements used in the riverside wall came from two major structures: a monumental arch and a screen decorated with figures of deities. This indicates the deliberate demolition of public structures to provide material for the wall’s construction, representing a drastic intervention in the urban fabric. The wall functioned not only as security but also as a very powerful symbol of urban prestige. We see this process as deliberate and careful recycling, which did not result from a lack of funds. In light of the scale and character of the demolition we need to think about why and how materials were chosen for re-use. Some re-used pieces retained meaning and received special treatment of deposition. Could there be an element of iconoclasm in the dismantling of the London monumental arch and screen of gods for use in the riverside wall? However, iconoclasm does not explain the reverential treatment of an officialis tomb statue, found with head carefully placed beneath his feet, mimicking contemporary burial practices, in one of the bastions of the late Roman defences in London. Furthermore, were systems of salvage at work? For example, parts of the same monument have been identified in two different bastions of the city-wall (B8 and B10). Since the bastions are some distance apart the implication is that the blocks were stockpiled before re-use.
The paper will thus investigate the ways in which earlier material was recycled: was the re-use carried out with a high technical effort and careful execution? What was the role played by central or imperial administration in the use of second-hand material as well as the shaping of the city-space? Overall, the evidence of recycling in London’s city wall will be examined alongside recent archaeological evidence for the transformation of the cityscape, and more broadly, against the backdrop of the growing research on recycling in late Roman city-walls (De Staebler 2008; Dey 2011; Witschel 2013). Much of this research has demonstrated that the building of and recycling in city-walls cannot be explained by crisis and invasion. Instead, recycling in city-walls can be seen as the result of political, ideological, and military factors and interactions.
The paper will also explore how the recycling in London city-walls compares to other parts of the South-East. In some cases, stonework may have been deliberately redisplayed, perhaps because of its apparent Romanitas. At Richborough, for instance, an earlier sculpture of a lion was set prominently into the defensive wall of the Saxon Shore Fort as a talisman and earlier mythological carvings were used to build the luxurious 4th century villa at Stanwick, near Peterborough. The latter case is particularly interesting given the proximity of the site to fresh stone from the Lincolnshire limestone outcrop, and is the subject of new research.
Lastly, we will also consider “non-Roman” spolia contexts. Roman stone spolia are preserved, and left visible, in later churches and Christian sites in the south-east. An imbricated column was used in the chapel of the Holy Innocents in the crypt of Canterbury Cathedral as a Christussaule; Valerius Amandinus’ Westminster sarcophagus with Latin inscription was recut with an early Medieval splayed cross; and a relief panel, newly identified as Roman, was displayed in the Transept at Peterborough Cathedral, perhaps reinterpreted by later audiences. Overall this paper seeks to provide new insights into recycling in London and the South-East and a new perspective on Roman recycling.

ENG: The main topic of this contribution is epigraphic monument dedicated to Faustina Augusta found in 2014 during the construction works of the new sewerage system within the protected urbanistic area at Liburnska obala in Zadar (ancient Iader), which required constant archaeological supervision that was provided by the Museum of Ancient Glass. Additional archaeological rescue excavations were undertaken in February and March of 2015, which enabled better insight into the monument’s finding context, as well as the acquisition of new evidence regarding the urban development of the north-eastern part of Zadar peninsula. Therefore, the authors shall present a detailed analysis of the aforementioned epigraph, the context in which it was found, including other ancient epigraphic and architectonic finds discovered therein, as well as the overall importance of these finds for the understanding of urban development of ancient Iader.
Previous Dalmatian finds of the cult of Faustina have been associated only with the two empresses of the same name: the mother – Faustina the Elder (Maior), wife of the Emperor Antoninus Pius (Annia Galeria Faustina Pia) and the daughter – Faustina the Younger (Minor), wife of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius – (Annia Galeria Faustina).
New inscription from Iader dedicated to Faustina represents an important contribution to better understanding of the empress’ cult in the area of ancient Liburnia. The inscription illustrates honouring of Faustina III, daughter of Marcus Aurelius and Faustina the Younger.
CRO: Glavna tema ovog rada je epigrafski spomenik posvećen Faustini Augusti, pronađen 2014. godine tijekom građevinskih radova na novom kanalizacijskom sustavu unutar zaštićene urbanističke zone na Liburnskoj obali u Zadru (antički Iader). Radovi su zahtijevali stalan arheološki nadzor osiguran od strane Muzeja antičkog stakla u Zadru. Dodatna zaštitna arheološka istraživanja poduzeta su u veljači i ožujku 2015. što je omogućilo bolji uvid u izvorni kontekst nalaza, ali i pružilo nove podatke o urbanom razvoju sjeveroistočnog dijela zadarskog poluotoka. U tom smislu autori će predstaviti iscrpnu analizu spomenutog natpisa, kontekst u kojem je nađen, uključujući druge antičke epigrafske i arhitektonske nalaze koji su pronađeni uz natpis, te razmotriti sveukupnu važnost ovih nalaza za razumijevanje urbanog razvoja antičkog Iadera.
Dosadašnji dalmatinski nalazi Faustinina kulta bili su isključivo vezani uz dvije istoimene carice: majku Faustinu Stariju (Maior), suprugu cara Antonina Pija – Annia Galeria Faustina Pia i kći Faustinu Mlađu (Minor), suprugu cara Marka Aurelija – Annia Galeria Faustina. Značajan prinos poznavanju caričina kulta na prostoru antičke Liburnije vezan je uz novi Faustinin natpis iz Jadera, iz kojeg se može iščitati štovanje Faustine III., kćeri Marka Aurelija i Faustine Mlađe.

During the 2012 field campaign at Miletus a series of new late antique and mediaeval monuments were investigated: a bathhouse at the eastern harbour, an insula south of the
West Market, the Byzantine city walls, their Serapeion Gate, architectural sculpture from the middle Byzantine period, the lates Byzantine settlement on the Theatre Hill, and the chapel of Hagia Paraskevi. The monuments are first discussed one by one and then evaluated in relation to the settlement history of Miletus. The early Byzantine city retained – and indeed
conserved – ancient buildings, sculptures and streets. Even churches were designed in an ancient style and, when the Byzantine city walls were built not before the late sixth century and more likely in the seventh, the temple of Serapis became the focal point of the biggest and most splendid gate. However, in the middle Byzantine period the ancient city centre was abandoned and remained in ruins after it was destroyed by an earthquake. Middle Byzantine prosperity is instead attested in the surrounding countryside with the construction of numerous elaborate churches and a considerable amount of architectural sculpture. Middle Byzantine Miletus was evidently affected by ruralisation; this could explain why the city had to be re-founded under the new name of Palatia and re-built on the previously uninhabited Theatre Hill when, from the later eleventh century onwards, the arrival of the Turks necessitated a return to urban fortifications.

The construction of urban defences was one of the hallmarks of the late Roman and late-antique periods (300–600 AD) throughout the western and eastern empire. City walls were the most significant construction projects of their time and they redefined the urban landscape. Their appearance and monumental scale, as well as the cost of labour and material, are easily comparable to projects from the High Empire; however, urban circuits provided late-antique towns with a new means of self-representation. While their final appearance and construction techniques varied greatly, the cost involved and the dramatic impact that such projects had on the urban topography of late-antique cities mark city walls as one of the most important urban initiatives of the period.

To-date, research on city walls in the two halves of the empire has highlighted chronological and regional variations, enabling scholars to rethink how and why urban circuits were built and functioned in Late Antiquity. Although these developments have made a significant contribution to the understanding of late-antique city walls, studies are often concerned with one single monument/small group of monuments or a particular region, and the issues raised do not usually lead to a broader perspective, creating an artificial divide between east and west. It is this broader understanding that this book seeks to provide.

The volume and its contributions arise from a conference held at the British School at Rome and the Swedish Institute of Classical Studies in Rome on June 20-21, 2018. It includes articles from world-leading experts in late-antique history and archaeology and is based around important themes that emerged at the conference, such as construction, spolia-use, late-antique architecture, culture and urbanism, empire-wide changes in Late Antiquity, and the perception of this practice by local inhabitants.

The construction of urban defences was one of the hallmarks of the late Roman and late-antique periods (300–600 AD) throughout the western and eastern empire. City walls were the most significant construction projects of their time and they redefined the urban landscape. Their appearance and monumental scale, as well as the cost of labour and material, are easily comparable to projects from the High Empire; however, urban circuits provided late-antique towns with a new means of self-representation. While their final appearance and construction techniques varied greatly, the cost involved and the dramatic impact that such projects had on the urban topography of late-antique cities mark city walls as one of the most important urban initiatives of the period. To-date, research on city walls in the two halves of the empire has highlighted chronological and regional variations, enabling scholars to rethink how and why urban circuits were built and functioned in Late Antiquity. Although these developments have made a significant contribution to the understanding of late-antique city walls, studies are often concerned with one single monument/small group of monuments or a particular region, and the issues raised do not usually lead to a broader perspective, creating an artificial divide between east and west. It is this broader understanding that this book seeks to provide. The volume and its contributions arise from a conference held at the British School at Rome and the Swedish Institute of Classical Studies in Rome on June 20-21, 2018. It includes articles from world-leading experts in late-antique history and archaeology and is based around important themes that emerged at the conference, such as construction, spolia-use, late-antique architecture, culture and urbanism, empire-wide changes in Late Antiquity, and the perception of this practice by local inhabitants.

Ur, the city of the moon god and “Home of Abraham” was founded by settlers in the 4th millennium BC. The remains of the site are located 345km south of Baghdad and 257km away from the Persian Gulf. It is one of the most prominent cities in Mesopotamia (Wooley 1934-1976). There is evidence that the occupation was ended by a flood, formerly attributed to the flood described in Genesis. Although the city is much smaller than Uruk, in the next (Early Dynastic) period Ur became the capital of southern Mesopotamia under the Sumerian kings of the 1st dynasty of Ur (25th century BC). The last king, who left his traces both at Ur and Uruk was the Achaemenian Cyrus the Great, whose inscription on bricks was found in recent excavations.
The cities survived until the reign of Artaxerxes II. It was perhaps at this time that the Euphrates changed its course. With the breakdown of the whole irrigation system of Ur, its fields reduced to a desert and were finally abandoned.
For this research, we used 2D and 3D Electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) to unveil the underground structures of this city.