COLCHESTER ARCHAEOLOGICAL REPORT 2: The Roman small finds from excavations in Colchester 1971-9 NINA CRUMMY COLCHESTER ARCHAEOLOGICAL REPORT 2: The Roman small finds from excavations in Colchester 1971-9 NINA CRUMMY with contributions from D G Buckley, Philip Crummy, Elizabeth Fowler, Patricia Galloway, Stephen Greep, Mark Hassall, Dr Martin Henig, Hilary Major, Dr Graham Webster, and Dr J P Wild Principal illustrators: R H MO YES AND T W COOK COLCHESTER ARCHAEOLOGICAL TRUST LTD © 1983 Colchester Archaeological Trust Ltd and List of contributors Department of the Environment ISBN 0 9503727 3 0 Donald Bailey, (lamps) Department of Greek and Roman Antiquities, Published 1983 by The British Museum, Colchester Archaeological Trust Ltd, London WC1B3DG 12 Lexden Road, Dr David Birkett, (human bones) Colchester, 26 Cornfield Road, Linthorpe, Essex. Middlesbrough, Cleveland Reprinted 1995 D G Buckley & Hilary Major, (quernstones) Archaeology Section, Planning Department, British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Essex County Council, Globe House, Chelmsford, Crummy, Nina Essex Philip Crummy, (sites) The Roman small finds from excavations in Colchester Archaeological Trust Ltd., Colchester, 1971-79. — (Colchester Archaeological 12 Lexden Road, Reports, ISSN 0264-6013; no 2) Colchester, Essex C03 3NF 1. Excavations (Archaeology) England Colchester. 2. Colchester (Essex) Antiquities. Elizabeth Fowler, (penannular brooches) 1A Althorp Road, 3. England Antiquities St Albans, I. Title II. Series Herts AL1 3PH 936.2'6'723 DA690.C7 Patricia Galloway, (combs) MS Department of Archives and History, PO Box 571, Jackson, Mississippi 39205 USA Stephen Greep, (fist and phallus amulets) Verulamium Museum, Printed by Witley Press, Hunstanton, Norfolk. St Michaels, St Albans, Herts AL3 4SW Mark Hassall, (oculist's stamps and inscriptions) Institute of Archaeology, The Colchester Archaeological Trust acknowledges 31 -34 Gordon Square, with thanks the grant from English Heritage towards London WC1H OPY the reprinting of this volume. Martin Henig, (gemstone intaglios) Institute of Archaeology, 36 Beaumont Street, Oxford 0X1 2PG E A Jobbins, (gemstones) Institute of Geological Sciences, The principal officers of the Colchester Archaeological Exhibition Road, Trust (formerly the Colchester Excavation Committee) London SW7 2DE since 1971 — Dr Rosemary Luff, (animal bones) c/o Eicon Research, Unit 9, Presidents: Lord Alport (1965-72) Viking Way, Sir Mortimer Wheeler (1972-6) Bar Hill, Cambridge Professor S S Frère (1976- ) Martyn Owen, (building stone) Chairmen: M R Hull (1971) Institute of Geological Sciences, Major J G S Brinson (1971-4) Exhibition Road, Dr M S Tite (1974-9) London SW7 2DE F H Thompson (1979-82) Robin Sanderson, (hones) Professor J J Wilkes (1982-7) Institute of Geological Sciences, Mark Hassall (1987- ) Exhibition Road, London SW7 2DE Honorary Secretaries: Major J G S Brinson (1964-72) Dr Graham Webster, (dagger scabbard) D T-D Clarke (1972-88) The Old School House, G M R Davies (1988-92) Chesterton, N Wickenden (1992- ) Harbury, Honorary Treasurers: C S Buck (1969-75) Nr Leamington Spa, Warwickshire I McMaster (1975-80) Dr J P Wild, (textiles) S G Maddison (1980-89) Department of Archaeology, J Greenwood (1989-94) University of Manchester, Director and General Editor: Philip Crummy (1971- ) Manchester M1 3 9PL COLCHESTER ARCHAEOLOGICAL REPORT 2: The Roman small finds from excavations in Colchester, 1971-9 Colchester Archaeological Reports General Editor: Philip Crummy Published by the Colchester Archaeological Trust Ltd Report 1: Aspects of Anglo-Saxon and Norman Colchester by Philip Crummy (CBA Research Report 39), 1981 ISBN 0 906780 06 3 Published 1981 jointly by the Colchester Archaeological Trust and the Council for British Archaeology, 112 Kennington Road, London SE11 6RE Reprinted 1995 by the Colchester Archaeological Trust Report 2: The Roman small finds from excavations in Colchester, 1971-9 by Nina Crummy, 1983, reprinted 1995 ISBN 0 9503727 3 0 Report 3: Excavations at Lion Walk, Balkrne Lane, and Middleborough, Colchester, Essex by Philip Crummy, 1984 ISBN 0 9503727 4 9 Report 4: The coins from excavations in Colchester, 1971-9 by Nina Crummy (ed), 1987 ISBN 0 9503727 6 5 Report 5: The post-Roman small finds from excavations in Colchester, 1971-85 by Nina Crummy, 1988 ISBN 0 9503727 7 3 Report 6: Excavations at Culver Street, the Gilberd School, and miscellaneous sites in Colchester, 1971-85 by Philip Crummy, 1992 ISBN 0 9503727 9 X Report 7: Post-Roman pottery from excavations in Colchester, 1971-85 by John Cotter forthcoming Report 8: Roman vessel glass from excavations in Colchester, 1971-85 by H E M Cool and Jennifer Price, 1995 ISBN 0 897719 02 7 Report 9: Excavations of Roman and later cemeteries, churches and monastic sites in Colchester, 1971-88 by Nina Crummy, Philip Crummy, and Carl Crossan, 1993 ISBN 0 897719 01 9 Report 10: Roman pottery from excavations in Colchester 1971-85 by R P Symonds and S Wade (eds P Bidwell and A Croom) forthcoming Report 11 : Camulodunum 2 by C F C Hawkes and Philip Crummy, 1995 ISBN 0 897719 03 5 Report 12: Animal bone from excavations in Colchester, 1971-85 by Rosemary Luff, 1993 ISBN 0 897719 00 0 CONTENTS Acknowledgments vi Illustrations vii Introduction 1 Category 1 : Objects of personal adornment or dress with contributions from Elizabeth Fowler, Martin Henig and Mark Hassall 7 Category 2: Toilet, surgical or pharmaceutical instruments with contributions from Patricia Galloway and Mark Hassall 55 Category 3: Objects used in the manufacture or working of textiles 65 Category 4: Household utensils and furniture with a contribution from D G Buckley and H Major 69 Category 5: Objects used for recreational purposes 91 Category 6: Objects employed in weighing and measuring 99 Category 7: Objects used for or associated with written communications 103 Category 8: Objects associated with transport 105 Category 9: Buildings and services 107 Category 10: Tools 107 Category 11: Fasteners and fittings 115 Category 12: Objects associated with agriculture, horticulture and animal husbandry 127 Category 13: Military equipment with contributions from Dr Graham Webster and Stephen Greep 129 Category 14: Objects associated with religious beliefs and practices with a contribution from DrJP Wild 141 Category 15: Objects and waste material associated with metal working 149 Category 16: Objects and waste material associated with antler, horn, bone and tooth working 149 Category 17: Objects and waste material associated with the manufacture of pottery vessels or pipeclay objects 161 Category 18: Objects the function or identification of which is unknown or uncertain 161 Bibliography 175 Object index 179 Index of objects by material(s) 181 Microfiche supplement Categories 1 to 18 as above 185 Appendix 1 : The jet pin roughs in the Yorkshire Museum 447 Appendix 2: Grave goods from the Butt Road cemeteries 451 Appendix 3: Further pottery counters 463 v Acknowledgements I am grateful to the contributors to this volume, both for their work and for their promptness in producing reports: David Buckley, Elizabeth Fowler, Dr Patricia Galloway, Stephen Greep, Mark Hassall, Martin Henig, Hilary Major, Dr Graham Webster, and Dr John Peter Wild. Other valuable help has been provided by Dr Rosemary Luff, Donald Bailey, Michael Eddy, and Dr David Birkett. Thanks are particularly due to Martyn Owen, Robin Sanderson, and E A Jobbins of the Institute of Geological Sciences, London, for their identifications of the minerals and stones used for various objects. Thanks are also due to many members, past and present, of the Trust's staff: Carl Crossan, Nicholas Smith, and Howard Brooks (site directors); Patrick Ottaway, Rosemarie Johnson, Pauline Meek, Victoria Grainger, Karen Butler, Dave Mann and Joy Hind (finds assistants); Alison Colchester (photographer); Philip Kenrick and Robin Symonds (pottery analysts); Eleanor Clark and Lynda Newstead, who retained their patience and good humour during the typing of a text consisting mainly of numbers; and the illustrators Alyson Drysdale, Lynda Hendry, and Suzanne Debski, and in particular Bob Moyes and Terry Cook for their excellent work. Thanks, too, should go to the site supervisors and diggers (too numerous to mention, or even remember) who excavated the finds. I would also like to thank past and present members of the Colchester and Essex Museum staff for their help: especially David T-D Clarke for the use of the Museum library, for making available objects from his collection for study, and for providing assistance, both practical and financial, with conservation and storage; and the conservators themselves, Peter Sweeny and Jean Whiffing, for their greatly valued work on the small finds. The whole, or parts, of the text has been read by Roger Goodburn, Justine Bayley, Sarnia Butcher, David T-D Clarke, Professor S S Frere, Professor John Wilkes, Donald Bailey, Professor CFCHawkes, Arthur MacGregor, Jenny Mann, DrW H Manning, DrGrace Simpson, Professor JMCToynbee, DrGraham Webster, and DrJohn Peter Wild, to whom I am indebted for their informative comments and criticisms. Finally, I would like to acknowledge my debt to Philip Crummy, the director of the Colchester Archaeological Trust, who was the principal site director for the excavations covered by this report, and who gave me constant and invaluable help and encouragement throughout its preparation. Illustrations 53 Earrings 54 Miscellaneous items of jewellery 55 Buckles and belt-plates 1 Colchester: locations