The wall once ran right across northern England for 117km and cut off the Caledonian ‘barbarians’ from the romanized civilians to the south.  Hadrian built it as part of his campaign of peace and stabilitythroughout the empire (he also had another border built along the farthest reaches of Roman Africa.   Following the massive expansion efforts under Trajan (including the conquest of Dacia in AD 106 and the campaigns against the Parthians beginning in AD 107), Hadrian was faced with a formidable task when he came to power following Trajan’s death in AD 117:  how to consolidate power and stabilize the Roman empire when it had been overstretched for far too long.  Among his various solutions – some successful, some not – were the construction of the wall in Britain and the huge pallisade across North Africa.

Among the benefits of such an undertaking, the construction of Hadrian’s Wall in Britain kept some potentially rebellious soldiers occupied with other tasks.  The wall took years to build as legionaries dug the foundation from the cold, wet clay-mud of northern England and built the forts and milecastles to maintain security at the Empire’s northern border.

The Wall is a rather surprising thing to see, particularly when you only realise after the fact that you have indeed seen it.  During one train trip to Edinburgh, the train I was on passed by a rural neighbourhood near the east coast and there, nestled in a little valley between the train tracks and a farm house, was a small pile of cut stone.  Nothing so spectacular as some of the taller sections and certainly less impressive than the restored section of the wall, this little bit of Hadrian’s political power was enough to catch in my throat all the history that it stood for, and still does stand for.

Also from The Guardian, here is a cute little video of the lighting of the wall this weekend.  THe music may be a bit schmalzy, but it’s a lovely event none-the-less.

Most recently – and, as far as I’m aware, not the first time this has been implemented – a group of archaeologist who discovered a huge sealed urn utilized the X-ray machines at the Exeter Airport to determine what was inside it.  The answer was the remains of a Roman, discovered at the site of a Roman fort at St. Andrews Hill in Cullompton.

From the dates of the fort and of the urn, it appears that this site was abandoned shortly after the Romans established more definite control over the south coast of England.  This would have been years after the Boudiccan Revolt of 60-61 AD/CE and well after the sweeping invasions of Aulus Plautius during the reign of Claudius (41-54 AD/CE).  In AD/CE 43, distinguished senator Aulus Plautius landed at Rutupiae with four legions:  the Second Augusta, the Ninth Hispania, the Fourteenth Gemina and the Twentieth Valeria Victrix.  The Ninth Hispania would later march north in 117 AD/CE to support the defeat of an uprising and were never heard from again (although it is argued that they survived their stint in Britain and were thereafter posted to the East, where they were destroyed during the Bar Kochba Revolt in Judaea) .  The Second Augusta was commanded by the future emperor Vespasian, sweeping through the countryside to Wales, where they established their base of operations at Caerleon in the Usk valley.

Ted O’Neill was kind enough to forward the press release issued from Rome in January 2010, an excerpt of which is found below:

“An ancient water source in Etruscan times, the web of springs was encapsulated by the Roman engineers in a vaulted, three-chambered semicircular ‘nymphaeum’, which served as a springhouse and probably contained the statue of a Roman river god or nymph. The ancient water source was commemorated by a sestertius coin minted by the Emperor Trajan when he inaugurated his aqueduct and his public baths in the centre of Rome, 1900 years ago.

For more than a thousand years, Trajan’s sacred water source was hidden under a Christian Church, now ruined and dismantled.  The ancient aqueduct still emerges from under the church’s meagre remains.  The water collection chamber of the Caput Aquae (headwaters) and 125 metres of the Roman Aqueduct gallery are still in pristine condition as compared with many crumbling ruins in the centre of Rome.

Ancient evidence and Papal records confirm that this shrine is almost certainly the primary water source of Trajan’s aqueduct:  the vaulted ceilings are all richly decorated with expensive Egyptian blue pigment, which strongly suggests that the great Emperor Trajan, proclaimed Optimus Princeps, almost certainly was here personally for his aqueduct’s inauguration.

Until recently, this water source was considered by some to be a local, regional aqueduct of eighteenth-century origin.

However, a descent below the chapel with powerful lights for  filming of the underground galleries revealed that the brickwork and waterproof hydraulic cement lining the tunnels is absolutely characteristic of the Trajanic age.” (Provincia di Roma:  Commune di Bracchiano, Commune di Manziana, and MEON HDTV Productions, 2010).

This discovery has raised many new questions and avenues for further exploration about the history of this massive construction effort from the early second century AD/CE.  Why was a Christian Church built over the water source and nymphaeum?  Was it purely because the foundations already in place cut down on construction costs?  Or is there any evidence that local knowledge of a clean water source prompted an association with religious cleansing centuries later? 

What can be learned about the unique architectural techniques utilized in the construction of this aqueduct?  Were Trajan’s workers the most advanced engineers the Roman world had ever seen?  What information can be drawn from the Aqua Paola, the seventeenth-century restoration by Pope Paul V, about the original aqueduct? 

What new literary references can be identified to support our knowledge of this discovery? 

What geological information is available on the site about the nature of the springs that supplied Rome with fresh water? 

Can the producers’ theory that the famous Trajanic coin represents the nymphaeum rather than the fountain on the Janiculum Hill be proved beyond question, and reflect a poetic conclusion to this wonderful discovery?

It is hard to imagine that this archaeological project is still in its early stages – the aqueduct source has been identified but the long-term research on engineering and construction methods, the history of the site and its socio-cultural significance have yet to be explored, published and debated.  To the project and its restoration and conservation efforts, I say happy hunting!

Enjoy!  And thanks to the Rogue Classicist for posting such a wonderful video!

Since then, tombs – also dating from the Byzantine period – have been uncovered in Bosra and Daraa city, Southern Syria.  These tombs contained bracelets and pot sherds that, coupled with the discovery of monks’ quarters and oil presses, suggest that the area dates from 500-700 CE.

These discoveries represent yet another example of how, despite civil unrest throughout the Middle East, archaeologists are still able to piece together the great puzzle of our collected cultural history.

My Italian is very mediocre but it seems that, from the quote offered, Mr. Vierin feels that archaeological work allows Italy to continue to develop an understanding of her history and her cultural heritage and that the discovery of this head exemplifies and reinforces that.

If anyone sees when the English reports on this find become available, perhaps a specialist will be able to translate the information more effectively.

*Many thanks to the Rogue Classicist for bringing this to my attention to begin with.

The site is 8 metres under water and boasts a huge set of granite doors, remarkably still sealed.  The Greek archaeological team who has been conducting work off the coast of Alexandria in past years feel that this could be the entrance to the Pharaoh’s tomb and could, due to the intact seal, possibly contain the remains of Cleopatra herself.  Is the mighty Queen of Egypt still lying at rest behind the huge gateway?  Is Antony there with her?  Will we finally see the face of, perhaps, the most famous woman in human history?

Forensic anthropologists have long considered the discovery of Cleopatra’s body to be the highest honour of facial reconstructive specialists.  If her remains can be scanned, a 3-D image of her skull could be digitized and we might finally know whether the greatest seductress of the Ancient World is as beautiful now as she was then.

According to Mr.Finkel, Mr. Simmons’ tablet is the first on record to describe the shape of the vessel:  round, circular, and made from reeds.  The ark did not have to be an ocean-going vessel with a prow and keel; it merely had to float as the flood waters rose.  Vessels of similar design are still used in Iraq and Iran to float livestock during river floods.

The original article from The Globe and Mail weekend edition of 2 January 2010 by Guardian Press Service reporter Maev Kennedy has proved rather difficult to find again.  However, Ms. Kennedy’s article suggests that further questions remain to be answered.  In particular, whether a replica of the ark recently opened to the public in Hong Kong will be considered inaccurate so soon after its unveiling.

In addition, I recently read a verse translation of the Epic of Gilgamesh by Hugh Mason that includes several new tablets that previously had been omitted for editorial reasons.  In the story, Gilgamesh meets Utnapishtim, who drank from the Fountain of Immortality after surviving a flood sent by the gods.  Unerringly similar to the Biblical Noah, Utnapishtim unites the Mesopotamian and Hebrew traditions and suggests, at the very least, a common cultural association between an ancient flood and the reverence due to the survivors.

Archaeology Magazine’s website has an excellent list compiled from the summer 2009 season of underwater sites that made the news when they first appeared but have since fallen out of the public eye, as the intensive archaeological excavations and analyses continue.  In particular, a Phoenician ship discovered off the coast of Cartagena has yielded vital information suggesting that Phoenician traders were interacting with peoples on the Atlantic coast west of the Straits of Gibraltar in the sixth century BCE.  There is also evidence of the diet – primarily nuts – that these ancient sailors could have expected during these long merchant voyages.  A Roman stone carrier was also discovered and, four years on, the site is still thrilling archaeologists.  Nautical archaeologist Deborah Carlson notes that this ship was carrying a marble column that, once assembled, would have been 30 feet high and included a Doric capitol.

There was also a Roman sewn ship discovered in Croatia in May of 2009 at the site of ongoing excavations of the Roman town of Kissa that has sunk into Caska Bay since the Romans inhabited it.  The remains of this ship will enlighten researchers about the process of manufacturing such a light, portable vehicle in this area of the Roman world.

The English Heritage website has also compiled a short list of ongoing projects in the UK that, from the moment of their identification, have had the Roman archaeological world all atwitter.  The most obvious of these are the Chester amphitheatre first discovered in 2004, the Roman villa at Groundwell Ridge, and the Cawthorn Roman camps.

Surprisingly missing from this list is the 2005 discovery of a Roman circus in Colchester, the first of its kind to be found in Britain, thus dispelling all theories about British art depicting the horse races based on stories and travels disseminated to the natives by non-Britons.  This discovery followed quickly on the heels of that of the amphitheatre at the same site in 2004.  The circus has been commemorated with a mosaic created in the Roman tradition by modern artists, and its unveiling was captured in this youtube video.

Also missing from the English Heritage site is the work currently ongoing at the site of the London amphitheatre, discovered in 1988 underneath the late medieval Guildhall of Britain’s capital.  An impressive if surprisingly short tour of the archaeological remains is available, after descending through the Guildhall Art Gallery into the dark underground beneath the Guildhall plaza itself.  Engineers have included a slate ring on the outer floor of this plaza that identifies the limits of the original Roman arena.

The Sagalassos Archaeological Project in recent years has yielded some of the most amazing artifacts ever discovered.  The site, first identified in the nineteenth century by French archaeologists, has since been found to include a large bath complex.  Beginning in July 2007, archaeologists discovered the remains of colossi of Hadrian, the Empress Faustina, and the Emperor Marcus Aurelius.  The colossus of Hadrian made its international debut at the British Museum’s ‘Hadrian:  Empire and Conflict’ exhibition.  The hope is that excavations in coming years will reveal colossal statues for each of the three remaining alcoves in the frigidarium of the baths, perhaps representing the Emperor Antoninus Pius, Hadrian’s wife Sabina, and Marcus Aurelius’ wife Faustina the Younger.  This find potentially represents the first example of imperial statuary limited to a single family, the Antonids, the last three of the traditional Five Good Emperors.

The Pylos Regional Archaeological Project concluded in 2005 after fifteen years of work in Greece at a Bronze Age site dubbed the ‘Palace of Nestor’, after the famously wise king of Homeric epic.  At this point, research and analysis are continuing in the lab and office to compile a publication of this successful dig.

In 2008, news came through the wire from the Egyptian Higher Council of Antiquities that archaeologists had eliminated all but three possible locations of the tomb of the Pharaoh Cleopatra and her doomed lover, the Roman general Marc Antony.  Excavations have, as of October 2009, resumed in Egypt at a site 50 kilometres from Alexandria in the hopes of unearthing the final resting place of this infamous pair.

What is being called the Staffordshire Hoard - a massive find of 1500 gold and silver pieces, larger than the famous Sutton Hoo hoard by a remarkable 6kg – has formally become part of the Department of Prehistory and Europe’s displays at the British Museum.  These pieces, featuring some of the most exquisite goldworking known from the Anglo-Saxon world, was discovered in September 2009 by amateur archaeologist Terry Herbert using a metal detector on a farm in Southern Staffordshire.  Dated to approximately the seventh century, it is the largest gold hoard ever discovered and has been equated with the Lindisfarne Gospels and the Book of Kells for its priceless value to the study of this period of history.

The mighty Perseus Digital Library continues to grow, with further texts by Seneca, Quintillian, Flaccus, Cicero, Aulus Gellius, Ammianus and Petronius.  In addition, they are looking to expand their Greek word database, improve their general searchability, and have recently announced the first release of their Arabic Collection.

And finally, for all those literary projects that I have not yet mentioned, the Athena Review has a substantial and comprehensive list of ongoing work worldwide.

Onward!

NOTE:  The titular quote is from Poem 54, line 63, by Michelangelo Buonarroti as translated by Anthony Mortimer.

Most recently, the Athenaeum of the Emperor Hadrian (AD/CE 117-138) – constructed after one of many visits to the Greek East – has been discovered and is under the watchful eye of archaeologists while construction workers look on.

Previously, temples, tombs, and the remnants of buildings following the Great Fire in AD/CE 65 have also been identified.

What else will come to light while Rome tries to expand its underground transit system?  Only time will tell.