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A |
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Administrators |
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People who work in offices, organising things and keeping records |
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Archaeology |
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The process of finding out about the past by carefully digging up evidence |
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Auger |
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A tool like a giant corkscrew with a T-shaped handle. Archaeologists can get a sample of soil from deep underground by screwing the auger into the ground and pulling it back out. |
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Auxiliary |
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Auxiliary soldiers served in the Roman army. They were specialist units like archers and cavalry who supported the legions. They were not Roman citizens so could not joint the legions themselves. |
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B |
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Bacchus |
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The Roman god of wine |
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Basilica |
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The Roman town hall and law court. Often built in a rectangle with the forum, it was one of the most important buildings in any Roman town. |
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Britons |
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The name historians use for the people who lived in England and Wales before the Romans invaded |
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C |
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CAD |
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Stands for Computer Aided Design |
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Chevrons |
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A 'V' shaped pattern |
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Citizen of Rome |
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Any member of the Roman Empire who was born free (not a slave) and who had been given the right to vote in government elections |
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Conservators |
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Skilled scientists who care for, repair and preserve objects |
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Constantine |
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Known as Constantine the Great. Roman Emperor from AD306 to AD337. He made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire. |
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Context |
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Objects are of most value to the archaeologist when we know the exact position where they were found and how they relate to the surrounding area. This is called their 'context'. |
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D |
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Dendrochronology |
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This is a way of dating ancient wood based on counting the number of rings that form through the wood as the tree grows |
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Diana |
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The Roman goddess of the moon and hunting. She was also the goddess of women and childbirth. |
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F |
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Fortuna |
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The Roman goddess of good fortune. Roman Londoners hoped that if they kept Fortuna happy she would bring them good luck. |
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Forum |
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The Roman marketplace. It was a rectangular structure with shops and offices in the walls and an open-air market in the middle. All the important merchants had their offices there. In London the basilica was built along one side of the forum. |
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G |
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Garrison |
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The part of the army who live in a town, or nearby, in order to defend it |
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Gaul |
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Gaul was the Roman name for the country we call France |
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Gaulish |
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Gaulish means something that comes from Gaul |
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Geomatics |
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The process of surveying places, collecting and processing spatial information using GIS and computer modelling, analysing and managing the information |
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Geoarchaeology |
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The process of reconstructing past landscapes and environments; examining buried soils and sediments, analysing the systems of deposition and formation that shaped each place |
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GIS |
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GIS stands for Geographical Information System. GIS is a computer system that records the exact position of natural features, like rivers, and structures that people have built. |
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Gladius |
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A short sword used by infantry soldiers for stabbing their opponents in close combat |
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Governor Paulinus |
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Governors were appointed by the emperor to run a province of the empire. Paulinus was governor of Britain at the time of Boudica's rebellion. He was replaced because he was treating the British tribes too cruelly. |
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Grave goods |
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Archaeologists describe the objects found buried with a dead person as 'grave goods' |
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I |
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Isis |
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Originally an ancient Egyptian goddess. She was adopted into Roman religion and became popular, mainly with women. |
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J |
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Jupiter |
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Jupiter was king of all the Roman gods |
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L |
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Legionary |
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An infantry soldier in the Roman army. You had to be a Roman citizen and you received better pay than the auxiliaries. |
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Legions |
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The Roman army was divided into legions. There were about 5500 men in a legion, divided into units called cohorts. Only Roman citizens were allowed to join the legions. The Ninth, Fourteenth and Twentieth legions were stationed in Britain. |
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Londinium |
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Londinium was the Roman name for London |
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M |
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Magnetometry |
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Magnetometry is a method of 'seeing' underground by measuring differences in how magnetic the soil is. The buried remains of buildings show up in differently to the surrounding soil. |
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Mansion House |
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Mansion House is the official home and office of the Lord Mayor of London. It is a grand house opposite the Bank of England, at the centre of the City of London. |
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Mars |
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The Roman god of war |
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Mars Camulus |
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The Romans took their own gods and merged them with local gods. Mars Camulus was a mix of the Roman god Mars and the Gaulish god Camulus. |
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Matrix |
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A matrix is a table showing the relationship between different strata, archaeological features and contexts. |
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Mercury |
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The messenger of the gods. He had wings on his helmet so he could travel very fast. |
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Minerva |
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Roman goddess of war and wisdom |
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Mithraism |
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The religion dedicated to worshipping the god Mithras |
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Mithras |
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A sun god originally from Iran. The worship of Mithras was a secret society for men only. It was particularly popular with Roman soldiers and merchants who spread the religion through the empire as far as Britain. |
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N |
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Ninth legion |
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One of the legions of the Roman army stationed in Britain. The Ninth Legion defeated Boudica in AD60. |
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O |
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Ordnance Survey |
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The official survey of modern Britain used to produce detailed maps of the whole country, which everyone can use. It was originally run by the army. They used the information to decide where to place heavy artillery (ordnance). |
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P |
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Pagan |
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'Pagan' was a term used by Christians to describe non-Christians |
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Persia |
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PPG16 |
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PPG16 is shorthand for Planning Policy Guidance Note 16 which came into effect in 1990. It allows archaeological investigations to take place before new buildings are constructed. |
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Procurator |
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The man in charge of the finances in the province of Britannia, rather like the Chancellor of the Exchequer today |
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Province |
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The parts of England where the Romans settled became a province of the Roman Empire. These lands were run as a single unit by the procurator and his administrators, similar to the way a county council now runs the whole area of the county. |
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Q |
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Quay |
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A wall of large timbers built on the riverbank to allow boats to be tied up safely and easily loaded or unloaded |
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R |
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Resistivity |
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Resistivity is a way of 'seeing' underground by measuring how easily the soil conducts electricity. Any remains of buildings underground block the electrical current and show up differently on the display. |
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S |
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Samian ware |
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A type of glossy red pottery made in Gaul and popular throughout the Roman empire |
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Sarcophagus |
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A coffin made of stone, often containing a second coffin of lead. Only the rich could afford this type of burial. |
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Serapis |
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An Egyptian god, adopted by the Romans as a healer of the sick and associated with fertility |
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Shrines |
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Small places displaying sacred images of a particular god where people could go and pray and leave offerings |
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Sites and Monuments Record (SMR) |
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The official record of all known sites of archaeological significance discovered by excavation. It also holds records of the discovery of archaeological finds that might indicate a possible site. It is kept by English Heritage and any site listed is legally protected. |
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Strata |
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A stratum (plural: strata) is another name for an archaeological layer |
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Stratigraphy |
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If a layer (or strata) contains finds which can be dated then that complete layer can be dated. By studying the different layers of material on a site archaeologists can work out the order in which things happened - even if a later feature has cut through earlier ones, as say a new ditch would. |
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T |
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Tacitus |
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A Roman writer and public official. He lived from AD56 to about AD120. He wrote about events and people in Britain, making his books a very important source of information. |
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Tessellated |
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A pattern of small pieces that fit together, like a jigsaw puzzle or mosaic. Roman tessellated flooring was made of cubes (tesserae) of coloured stone or clay that fitted together to make a hard-wearing surface. |
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V |
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Venus |
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Roman goddess of beauty and love |
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W |
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Wattle and daub |
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A way of making walls for houses. Thin branches (wattle) are woven together to make a frame and then covered with a mixture of mud, straw or animal dung (daub), which can then be plastered and painted. |
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Worship |
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The act of praying to and honouring one of the many gods and goddesses that made up the Roman religion |
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