Hadrian's Wall 1999-2009
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HADRIAN’S WALL 1999-2009 HADRIAN’S WALL HADRIAN’S WALL 1999-2009 A summary of recent excavation and research prepared for the Thirteenth Pilgrimage of Hadrian’s Wall, 2009 HADRIAN’S WALL 1999-2009 The Pilgrimage of Hadrian’s Wall (a tradition going back to 1849) takes place every ten years, giving all who are interested in the remains of Rome’s most elaborate frontier a chance to revisit the remains and hear about the latest archaeological developments. This specially prepared book, with contributions from all the major excavators on the Wall, describes research and discovery that has taken place since the last pilgrimage in 1999. This has been an extraordinary decade for Wall-research, featuring the discovery of the probable ancient name for the barrier, and the recognition Compiled by N. Hodgson of a previously unknown element of its anatomy (obstacles in front of the Wall), which is the rst such addition to our image of the Wall in modern times. This book explains where the new information is to be found, and will appeal to all who visit or study Hadrian’s remarkable frontier. CUMBERLAND & WESTMORLAND ANTIQUARIAN AND ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY THE SOCIETY OF ANTIQUARIES OF NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE Compiled by N. Hodgson Front cover: the Staffordshire Moorlands Pan, inscribed with the names of Wall- forts and the probable ancient name of the Wall (courtesy of Portable Antiquities Scheme) Back cover: emplacements for obstacles between the Wall and its ditch, under excavation at Byker, Newcastle upon Tyne 551114_TWM_COVER.indd1114_TWM_COVER.indd 1 117/07/20097/07/2009 009:319:31 CUMBERLAND AND WESTMORLAND ANTIQUARIAN AND ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY THE SOCIETY OF ANTIQUARIES OF NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE HADRIAN’S WALL 1999-2009 A Summary of Excavation and Research prepared for The Thirteenth Pilgrimage of Hadrian’s Wall, 8-14 August 2009 compiled by N. Hodgson Kendal, 2009 Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society and the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne Hadrian’s Wall 1999-2009: a summary of excavation and research prepared for the Thirteenth Pilgrimage of Hadrian’s Wall, 8-14 August 2009 © N. Hodgson and the various contributors 2009. All rights reserved The moral rights of the author have been asserted British Library Cataloguing in-Publication Data A CIP catalogue entry for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 978-1-873124-48-2 No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior written permission of the copyright owner or as expressly permitted by law. Requests for the copyright owner’s written permission to reproduce any part of this publication should be made of the copyright owner through the publishers. Printed by Titus Wilson & Son, Kendal 2009 CONTENTS Organising Committee for the Thirteenth Pilgrimage of Hadrian’s Wall iv Foreword (by D.J. Breeze) v Preface and acknowledgements vii 1. Previous Pilgrimages (by N. Hodgson) 1 2. A review of research on Hadrian’s Wall 1999-2009 (by N. Hodgson) 5 3. A round-up of other developments since 1999 (by various contributors) 53 4. Survey and excavation on Hadrian’s Wall, 1999-2009 (by various contributors) 61 Bibliography 173 iii ORGANISING COMMITTEE FOR THE THIRTEENTH PILGRIMAGE OF HADRIAN’S WALL Chairman: PROF. D.J.BREEZE, O.B.E., B.A., Ph.D., Hon. D.Litt, F.R.S.E, F.S.A, F.S.A. (Scot.), Hon. M.I.f.A. L. ALLASON-JONES, B.A., M.Litt, F.S.A., F.M.A., F.R.S.A., M.I.f.A. P.S. AUSTEN, M.A., M.A, M.I.f.A. I.D. CARUANA, M.A., F.S.A. (Scot.) PROF. J.G. CROW, B.A., M.Litt, F.S.A. W.B. GRIFFITHS, B.A. R. HINGLEY, B.A., Ph.D., F.S.A. N. HODGSON, M.A., Ph.D., F.S.A. R. NEWMAN, B.A., F.S.A. P.R. WILSON, B.A., Ph.D., F.S.A. iv FOREWORD An event with a history stretching over 150 years has, naturally, created its own traditions. One is that the direction of the Pilgrimage alternates each time; this year we start in the west and progress towards the east. However, new traditions can be created. In 1999, to mark the 150th anniversary of the fi rst Pilgrimage, we laid a wreath at the memorial to John Collingwood Bruce in Newcastle Cathedral and this time we will repeat this action. Certain walks have become traditional on the Pilgrimage. These include the sector from Housesteads west to Steel Rigg and from Cawfi elds to Carvoran. In 2009, we are not undertaking these walks but instead exploring quieter parts of Cumberland. One of the reasons for the change is to ensure that we do not contribute to the wear in the central sector. Another is to consider new research on the Wall. In two specifi c areas, there have been signifi cant contributions to knowledge. One is through the work of Humphrey Welfare in examining the surviving earthworks which have enabled him to draw out specifi c conclusions concerning the lack of causeways in front of milecastle north gates and the nature of the upcast mound to the north of the ditch. Elsewhere the geophysical surveys of TimeScape have revolutionised our knowledge of civil settlements outside forts, as well as providing signifi cant evidence elsewhere relating to the location and nature of the various linear elements. One of the most important new discoveries through excavation has been the pits on the berm, the space between the Wall and the ditch, by Tyne and Wear Museums. This has demonstrated that archaeological remains can survive well in urban contexts as well as providing Hadrian’s Wall with an entirely new element. Furthermore, the apparent narrowing of the berm by T 11b allowed Paul Bidwell to make sense of the recording of the changing width of the berm in the sector west of Birdoswald in the 1930s. Recording and understanding the surviving remains is one thing, but interpreting them is another. Does the existence of the pits on the berm make it more or less likely that there was a wall-walk along the top of the Wall, as Lindsay Allason- Jones memorably asked? The nature of the stone wall has been the subject of two books by Peter Hill. They challenge many of our preconceptions about the building of Hadrian’s Wall, including the length of time it would have taken to construct. Acceptance of these points allows other theories to be developed about the building programme and its director. All of this demonstrates that Hadrian’s Wall studies are alive and well or, to put it another way, that Mortimer Wheeler was wrong when he said that all the problems of Hadrian’s Wall were solved and all we had to do now was v to dot the ‘i’s and cross the ‘t’s. This companion for the 2009 Pilgrimage is a testimony to the vitality of Wall studies. At the time of the last Pilgrimage, it was decided to produce a different style of handbook and that proved so popular that we have repeated the formula this year. Here we have a statement of research on Hadrian’s Wall over the last decade, ably brought together by one of the leading students of the Wall. It will have a life long beyond the Pilgrimage. David Breeze Chairman of the Organising Committee vi PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Pilgrimage Book is traditionally not a guidebook to the Wall, but an account of new discovery and research, both on general themes and at individual sites. A scholarly, up-to-date and well-illustrated description of the sites is available in the form of David Breeze’s fourteenth revised edition of the Handbook to the Roman Wall (2006) which readers are recommended to use in conjunction with the present work. The period covered here is the 10 years since the Pilgrimage of 1999, when Paul Bidwell compiled the most ambitious Pilgrimage publication to date in size and scope. The bibliography of research since 1999 is designed to form a supplement to the comprehensive bibliography of work 1989-99 provided in that volume. At the request of the organising committee some passages are included (in italics) which describe the reasons for the 2009 Pilgrimage visiting some parts of the Wall that are off the usual beaten track. This is not just to avoid erosion in the well-trodden parts, but because neglected areas of the Wall often raise questions of real importance to which it is worthwhile drawing special attention. Some effort has been made to include plans and illustrations of sites to be visited by the Pilgrimage in 2009. However, even though the Pilgrimage in 2009 will travel from west to east, Chapter 4 of this book is organised in the traditional order of Wall sites from east to west, to make it easier for researchers to use in conjunction with the Handbook to the Roman Wall and other archaeological literature. I am grateful to the organising committee for asking me to compile this volume and for their guidance, and particularly to David Breeze for his close interest and support throughout. I especially thank the contributors, who responded promptly to squeeze a vast amount of information into a short compass. I am grateful also to Brian Dobson and Paul Bidwell for reading and valuably commenting on the bulk of the text, and to David Breeze for similarly reading and most usefully commenting on Chapter 2.