GhostOfClayton

Anyone care to caption this one? The painting is "The Romans Cause a Wall to be Built for the Protection of the South". The Centurion has been given the face of John Clayton, a 19th Century Antiquarian who was responsible for preserving much of the currently extant strectches of Hadrian's Wall.

Have a look at this recent find: www.thisisscunthorpe.co.uk/news/2-000-year-old-Roman-artefact-goes/article-1949014-detail/article.html A soldier's souvenir from Hadrian's Wall? A friend spoke to the lady at Scunthorpe Museum. The rationale to identify it as a soldier's souvenir is its similarity in size, shape and form to the Rudge Cup and Staffordshire Patera (and presumably the Amien Patera, though I've never seen a picture of that - anyone?) NB Thanks to Melvadius (see below) for the picture of the Amien Patera. also that the pattern of inlaid squares was representative of a wall (in fairness, something similar is used on the Rudge Cup.) Seems fairly scant evidence for such a big claim. Doesn't it?

Yep. This one has my vote (so far).

"Noli me vocare. Ego te vocabo."

I've got it (PM sent to you, Medusa). If anyone else needs a copy, let me know.

What did anyone think to "Gladiators: Back From the Dead" on Channel 4 last night? An excellent documentary, I thought. Some fascinating insights into gladitorial life (and death). I'd never come across the Charon character finishing off wounded Gladiators with a hammer. . . . and all that was just from 6 skeletons. 74 more to go! If you didn't catch it, I'm sure it'll be on 4OD. If you saw it, and enyoyed it, can I recomend a visit to the amphitheatre in N

Sorry about the delay - been up on Hadrian's Wall, and scandalously, not all hotels have wi-fi nowadays. What's wrong with the world? Anyway, fortunately I only heard about the shootings in Cumbria after I did this post. I missed it all by a day. Sobering! Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me (for reasons I won't go into here), but Geograph came to the rescue. http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/10547 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1059500 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1697092 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1335579

As an alternative to a rainy Saturday in Lakeland, I decided to take a look at what the Cumbrian coast had to offer in the way of Roman remains. I wasn't disappointed. I started with Milefortlet 21. This is one of (actual, the twenty-first of) a series of defesive structures that continue down the coast from Bowness on Solway (which is close to the point where the wall stops/starts). It's the only Milefortlet to have been fully excavated. The walls (turf cheeks with sand core) have been reinstated to a height of about a metre, the ditch has been reinstated, and the internal walls have been marked out. A word of warning if you'd like to visit, though: it is no longer accesible from the car park just below. You know have to park at the picnic site at the junction of the coast road with the Croscanonby Road. There is a field gate close to that junction (but no signs), from which a good path runs the 250m or so along the cliff edge to the Milefortlet. Also note that the adjacent salt pans are not Roman. Next, it was on to Maryport, and the fort of Alauna. Adjacent to the site is The Senhouse Roman Museum,

I wish they'd said a bit more about the Roman breakfast.

I know I shouldn't, and I've been desperately trying to stop myself, but I've not managed to talk myself out of it. I've started to fill in the empty Wikipedia pages for the Hadrian's Wall Milecastles. They were staring at me, begging to be completed. The first 8 (and also a few higher in the number range) had been started as stubs. So far I've filled in the detail up to, and including number 4. 76 more to go, plus about 27 milefortlets on the Cumbria Coast! So anybody fancy giving me a hand? Or at least commenting on the content of the first 4 (get the format right early on and I only need to change 4 entries. Imagine if I change the format on MC77!) And if anyone has any related photos of milecasltes or turrets they could upload to Geograph.co.uk or Wikimedia Commons, that'd help. Thanks in advance.

I've now seen Centurion, and I have a tip for anyone who's plannning to see it, and hasn't yet done so. Go into the film expecting something like King Arthur (as I did), and you'll be very pleasantly surprised. If you go in expecting something akin to HBO Rome, you will be disappointed.

Technically this is correct, but it is a little bit like saying that Napoleon was responsible for finally conquering the Roman Empire because the Holy Roman Empire can be seen as a resurgency of the Western Roman empire (while the Eastern Roman Empire was still in existence), and the last person to hold the title of Holy Roman Emperor was Francis II, who abdicated following military defeat by Napolean. I look forward to hearing views on whether or not Napoleon 'did for' the Roman Empire. PS Yes, I was a little contentious purely to invite debate about the Napoleon thing. Tortuous link, I know.

Judge for yourself whether or not you think this is off-topic, and feel free to berate me accordingly (I'm thick-skinned, I can take it!) Why is it off-topic? It's not really a book, but I've been listening to something I found on iTunesU. It's a series of lectures called (inspiringly) "106B - The Roman Empire" from Berkeley, by Prof. Isobelle Pafford. There's a little bit about the Late Republic, but it pretty much starts with our friend, Julius Caesar, and works its way through roughly chronologically. The subject matter deals primarily with the Emperors, but is very well interspersed with topics on the life, customs and practices (etc.) of the times. The sound quality is a little ropey for the first two or three, but those who bear with it are rewarded with a fascinating series of lectures, delivered with just the right level of humour, by a lecturer who clearly knows her onions (she lectures at Berkeley, why would she not?) Anyway, in conclusion, download iTunes if you have to, and give it a listen (you don't need an iPod/iPhone, you can listen from your PC/Mac). I'm prepared to bet pretty roundly that even the most highly educated Romano-Anoraks among you will learn something new, and even find something to argue with.

Thanks for the information, Melvadius. I shall go away and digest it. Fortunately, we're planning a July visit, so hopefully all will be open. There's an interesting looking peice of Saxon Shore masonary on the cover of the OS "Roman Britain" map. (http://www.amazon.com/Roman-Britain-Historical-Ordnance-Survey/dp/0319290298/ref=pd_sim_b_5). Any idea what that is?

I decided that this year I would treat myself and Mrs. OfClayton to a week in Kent with a view to seeing what there was to see of the Saxon Shore defences, etc. So, where should I go? What is a must-see down there? Any museums worth a visit? Any sites? Other Roman stuff in Kent, or within a comfortable drive/train journey? As a dedicated Northerner, it's not often I find myself south of the Wash, so any advice would be gratefully received.

Well, we've got the Roman stuff listed earlier in this thread, anything else you know of, WW? Anything maybe a short train ride out?

A good plan, WW. One tiny drawback, however, is that it would leave us back at square 1. I.e., where should we go 'down south'? (Assuming you read Lincoln as being 'up north', which AC may disagree with.)

Well, you guys have quite depressed me now. It made such a good story when Wikipedia told it . . . Keats and Aristotle were wrong, there's no truth in beauty after all. C'est la vie! We'd better chalk that one up as an atrocity, then.

You've come to the right place. There are a good number of Roman cognoscentus recti here. So much so, that one of them will come along soon and correct my Latin . . . mark my words . . . not long now.

Now, Sylla, I'm going to go out on a limb here. I tend to learn anything I know about Roman history from Wikipedia (so it must be right!?!), and I suspect you may have had a formal historical education, so I must tread carefully when engaging you in this discussion . . . but didn't Livy insist that no sexual assault took place?

Will do. . . thanks, CN.

Now, on UNRV, I always venture into this sort of territory with a certain trepidation. I know there are much better educated folk on here than myself. . . . but . . . I was always lead to believe that in the case of the rape of the Sabine women, no rape actually took place. Rape (I thought) was a mistranslation of 'Raptio', which actually meant 'abduction'. The idea from the Romans was to hold the Sabine women only long enough to persuade them that they would have a better life if they stayed, than if they returned to their Sabine menfolk, and many opted to stay. On the subject on human nature, (without straying from The Rape of the Sabine Women too far), if I'm running in front of time on my Hadrian's Wall tours, I offer the clients a choice of lecture: 'Roman Tourist Tat' (which allows me to talk about the Rudge Cup, Amiens Skillet, Staffs Pan, etc.) or 'The Rape of the Sabine Women'. Every single group has asked for 'The Rape of the Sabine Women'. By the way, "Top Ten Best v worst Roman Atrocities" . . . I need to ponder on that one!

Hey CN. Do you mind if I pinch your idea (and some of the replies) and use it as a basis for a lecture for the local History Group? "The Top Ten Roman Attrocities" is a title that would really pack 'em in (what does that tell you about human nature?) . . . . and bums on seats usually means new members. I could play with the number of attrocities based on time available, and finish (or maybe start . . . no, finish) with The Rape of the Sabine Women. Sounds like an attrocity, but (arguably) wasn't. I could even tell it to make the Romans sound like the good guys! Let the audience go out on a feel-good story. Is that OK?

. . . . and then became a 3D cinema ! I'll recomend it to anyone who visits N

I've been there twice since the [utterly fantastic] Hadrian Exhibition, and still I forget to mention it! I think my memory isn't what it was. I'll tell you something else as well . . my memory isn't what it was.