Perring Dominic - London in the Roman World

The writing of this book has stretched over the best part of a decade, following a very much longer period of interest in the archaeology of London. Throughout these years I have benefitted from the open generosity of numerous field archaeologists and specialists who have discussed their findings and ideas with me, and this leaves me a legion of magpie debts that I am unable to individually acknowledge: I am lucky to have been part of such an exciting research community. I am particularly grateful, however, to Gary Brown and Vicky Ridgeway for early sight of reports emerging from the investigations undertaken by Pre-Construct Archaeology, and to David Bowsher and Julian Hill for similarly keeping me abreast of work undertaken by the MoLA team. Ian Blair, Trevor Brigham, Gwladys Monteil, Rebecca Redfern, and Bruce Watson were all kind enough to give me early access to the unpublished results of their important research, whilst Damian Goodburn, Michael Marshall, and Jim Stevenson helped me to understand critical matters of detail in their replies to my questions. Andy Gardner, Martin Pitts, Louise Rayner, Jackie Keily, Sadie Watson, and Tim Williams read parts of this text in an earlier draft, and helped enormously with both thoughtful comment and encouragement. Dan Nesbitt kindly arranged access to materials and records held at the Museum of Londons Archaeological Archive, an exercise that was sadly curtailed by the interruptions of Covid-19 closure. I would never have found the time to write these words without the unstinting support of my colleagues at Archaeology South-East, who have accommodated my many distractions with this work, and it would never have reached print without a generous grant from the Marc Fitch Fund to cover the costs of preparing new illustrations by Justin Russell and Fiona Griffin. Justins diligent mapping of recent discoveries, in particular, has added enormously to my understanding of Londons archaeological landscape. I am also deeply grateful to the editorial team at Oxford University Press Charlotte Loveridge, Cline Louasli, and Juliet Gardner for steering this work to conclusion after its lengthy gestation. Most of all, however, I thank Rui and Zi for their love and forebearing throughout.

Those unfamiliar with London are likely to find the Roman town difficult to navigate. There is no agreed system for naming and locating its ancient streets and houses, and modern place-names and postal addresses have changed with confusing frequency over the years. A proliferation of catalogues has served past surveys, each sensible to a different logic. Rather than add to this number I have followed the approach adopted by Richard Hingley in his recent study Londinium: A biography. This involves using the unique alpha-numeric excavation codes of the Guildhall Museum and Museum of London to identify individual excavation sites. These site-codes preserve the vital link between the primary archaeological record and the different interpretations and reconstructions that have been layered onto these observations. These sites are all listed and mapped in a concluding gazetteer ().

The maps of Roman London used to illustrate this account are necessarily highly schematic and involve a fair degree of conjecture. Those with a close interest in the urban topography may also find it useful to consult the fold-out 1:3000 scale map of Roman London published by the Museum of London. At the time of writing, this remains in print and obtainable from https://www.mola.org.uk/londinium-new-map-and-guide-roman-london. Although somewhat dated, it remains a splendid initial point of reference. A useful, if not entirely reliable, map of Londons Roman environs can also be found online at https://www.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=9a85640effc042ae91af6b0d43abbafb.

The Museum of Londons Archaeological Archive remains the most valuable primary source, containing a wealth of unpublished information. This is a public archive where many of the finds and records described here can be consulted by prior arrangement. Some of the more important objects are also on public display: the British Museum draws heavily on the Roman London collection of Charles Roach Smith, and the Museum of London has long been committed to presenting the archaeological finds obtained from rescue excavations in and around London. The surviving remains of Londinium can also be visited, for which the City of London Archaeological Trusts online walking guide is highly recommended: https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/assets/roads-to-romewalk.pdf.