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Much has been written about the Petra Papyri since their discovery in 1993. However, little has been published on their connection with taxes, and our understanding of Petra and trade has changed considerably in the last couple of decades. The papyri provide plenty of information concerning the material culture of Byzantine Petra. The purpose of this paper is to review the economic and historical information in the papyri related to taxes on the land, and to understand the economic reality in Petra and its hinterland during the Byzantine period. The papyri indicate the existence of a stable society and continuity of human settlement in Petra and its neighbouring areas such as Udhruh and Al-Sadaqa, especially after the frequent earthquakes that threatened the region between the fourth- and seventh-centuries AD. It is clear from the papyri that there is an advanced tax system in the Petra region during the sixth-century AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article offers an overview of what every theologian and scholar of religion should know about changes in biblical studies that have taken place concerning the past depreciation of Second Temple Judaism, the use of newly discovered sources and their implications, as well as integrative approaches to top-down (reflected beliefs, prescribed practices, textual sources) and bottom-up (intuitive beliefs, lived practices, material culture) processes. Changes in the field lead to the re-writing of the history of the Bible and of Judaean society in the Greco-Roman context. By means of this co-authored research article, we wish to demonstrate the benefit of, as well as the need for, interdisciplinary work in the study of antiquity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aisled hall at North Warnborough has attracted attention as one of a handful of examples frequently included in surveys and analyses of this common architectural type as well as for arguments related to the gendered use of space. This article presents a new architectural analysis of this building and attempts to set it within its immediate and wider archaeological and geological landscape context. A theoretically informed interpretation of the social significance of this site is offered, which has broader implications for the studies of Romano-British architecture, rural settlement, and landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Archaeology has been firmly embedded in the British planning systems for over a quarter of century, and development-led fieldwork is now by far the largest source of new information available to researchers. Custom and practice in the way that such work is conducted has evolved over this time, yet methodological innovation has been surprisingly limited. Using the data gathered in a major survey of the rural settlement of Roman Britain, this paper explores some themes in the way that commercial work is undertaken and seeks to open up a long-overdue debate about professional practice in a development-led context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence recovered on the site known from late ninth-century charters as Æthelred's hithe illustrates successive phases in the early development of London as an international port. While two middle Anglo- Saxon female skeletons were found in foreshore deposits, coins and other metalwork, along with the remains of gangplank trestles, suggest the site was a trading shore from at least the later ninth century. Riverside construction followed by the late tenth century: several low waterfront embankments date to the late tenth and early eleventh century, the waterfront was divided into regular plots and timber buildings erected. Reused nautical and building timbers include fragments of a Frisian ship and an arcaded building. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Levels of mobility in the Roman Empire have long been assumed to be relatively high, as attested by epigraphy, demography, material culture and, most recently, isotope analysis and the skeletons themselves. Building on recent data from a range of Romano-British sites (Poundbury in Dorset, York, Winchester, Gloucester, Catterick and Scorton), this article explores the significance of the presence of migrants at these sites and the impact they may have had on their host societies. The authors explore the usefulness of diaspora theory, and in particular the concept of imperial and colonial diasporas, to illustrate the complexities of identities in later Roman Britain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Those who study Roman art and religion in Britain will know that there are a relatively small number of pieces in stone and bronze which are regularly used to illustrate arguments on Romanization, provincialism and identity. However, while these objects become familiar through such use, they are, in fact, often little studied as pieces in their own right and the only description of their appearance and context are some fifty or more years old. Re-excavation of the context from which the Silchester eagle was recovered has raised questions about the date of its deposition, as well as its origin and use, and indeed the nature of its deposition at Silchester. This paper examines the figurine in detail, the role of the eagle at Silchester and explores the significance of the eagle more widely in Roman Britain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article, part of a supplement dedicated to the proceedings of the 2012 Summer Meeting of the Royal Archaeological Institute of Great Britain, chronicles the history of the county of Lancashire in England. Topics addressed include Lancashire's geology and geomorphology, its prehistory, the Roman period, and the Middle Ages and after.

Recent scholarship has claimed that the history of Roman Britain has been discussed in terms of 'Romanization' since the beginning of the seventeenth century. In fact, it is wrong to think that there is a single tradition in the understanding of Roman Britain. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, Camden and his followers were primarily interested in the bringing of 'civility' to England, with only a minimal consciousness of material culture (coins, inscriptions and sites). Discussion of Roman Britain was already overshadowed by an emphasis on military identity, viewing Roman soldiers and civilian subjects as essentially separate, the latter little influenced by the former. Only in the later nineteenth century, and particularly in the work of Francis Haverfield, did an idea of cultural 'Romanization' find its way to the centre of scholarly discussions. Far from there being a single scholarly understanding of the history of Roman Britain, accounts have been continually rewritten to reflect the nature of the relationship between the English and their empire. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the first detailed review of all archaeobotanical records from Roman Britain. It reveals that some 50 new plants food (mostly fruits, herbs and vegetables) were introduced into this country during the Roman period. These introductions represent a major diversification of the plant component of the British diet at this time, adding important nutrients, variety of flavours, ways of expressing cultural identity, as well as social status. The geographical, chronological and social dispersal of these foods is analysed and three dispersal patterns and at least four consumer groups are identified. Methodological issues are discussed and gaps in the data highlighted. The role of these foods in expressions of cultural identity is briefly discussed, as is the impact of their introduction on the productive capacity of the agricultural economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A silted-up palaeochannel in the postglacial estuarine alluvium exposed at Oldbury Flats on the south-eastern shore of the Severn Estuary has yielded a considerable variety of Romano-British occupation debris, and constitutes a major primary source for the substantial quantities of previously recorded archaeological material transposed into the present-day intertidal zone. The disposition of the abandoned tidal channels, the pattern of medieval fields, and the configuration and relationships of the surviving seabank to early finds in the area point to substantial landscape and coastal changes from the Roman period onward. Considerable losses of alluvial land appear to have occurred, and these may have forced the inland dispersal of the Romano-British settlement. Perhaps because of its location, close to the shore of the estuary, and near major creeks, the settlement is the richest so far detected on the Severn Levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a background of the marches and the early Roman campaigns in the border country of England and Wales. The two great plains of Shropshire and Herefordshire are considered the dominant physical features of the marches. It is noted that the Roman invasion of A.D. 43 and the creation of the new province of Britannia had little impact on the tribes of Wales. Rome demonstrated a skillful act of diplomacy in securing the services of Queen Cartimandua, who ruled over the large territories of Brigantes.

The article focuses on the region around the present town of Montgomery (Trefaldwyn) as a classic area for the study of settlement history. Within a radius of less than two miles from the town, archaeologist can found major monuments dating from all periods between the Iron Age and medieval times. The two valley routes wherein the area is situated include one that was formed by the Severn and the Camlad and the valley of the Severn leading into the foothills of Wales. The crossing at Rhydwhyman was controlled by the Romans by means of a fort constructed on the valley bottom.

The article describes the village of Wroxeter located in the county of Shropshire, England during the Roman occupation. It is noted that the village was a key position in the first century campaigns against Wales and the site of the fortresses, Legio XIV and Legio XX. As part of Hadrian's policy of increasing romanization into the frontier zones, the city was expanded. The forum and baths were constructed in the city, which were subjected to major changes in plan during construction. The city was abandoned by the inhabitants in the sixth century.