Digging^PHistory

at vindolanda
where you can take part in
an excavation of Roman Britain
B Y SCOTT REEVES

or decades, archaeologists have gathered

in northern England at one of the world's
most famous working archaeological ex-
cavations. The grass has been slowly
pulled away to reveal a stunning Roman
fort and its surroundings; the artifacts ex-
tracted from the ground have not been
touched by human hands since the end of Roman Brit-
ain. This is Vindolanda: the front line of Roman Bri-
tannia turned into the front line of historical research.
Vindolanda sits just 30 miles south of the English-
Scottish border in a rural setting. Pass through the vis-
itor entrance and you are confronted with a maze of
low stone walls, the tantalizing ruins of a massive mili-
tary complex that once stood here. Here was where the
men of the mighty Roman war machine lived and died,
leaving behind objects used in the course of their work,
leisure and everyday life.
The first fort was originally constructed in turf and
timber around AD 85, a time when Geltic Britain was
still in the process of becoming Roman Britannia. Vin-
dolanda was a conquest fort, a base from which the
legendary Roman army could range further afield as
the sphere of Roman influence crept ever further north.
Things changed a little in AD 122. The troublesome
tribes in the north were proving too difficult to con-
quer, so Emperor Hadrian decided to demarcate the
frontier of the Roman Empire in stone. Hadrian's Wall
ran only a couple of miles to the north of Vindolanda
and the fort was temporarily abandoned, the garrison
transferred to the wall itself.
Soon enough it was decided that Vindolanda was too
good a location to leave to rot and a new stone fort
was built on the same site. Vindolanda then remained
in use until the end of the Roman occupation of Brit-
ain in AD 410. Successive auxiliary units were posted
to Vindolanda and rebuilt the fort in their own way;
the remains of at least nine forts have been found.
So, how do we know all this? It is a complicated
puzzle, but Vindolanda is one of the best-understood
Roman sites in Britain due to the tireless work of one
family over the best part of a century.
The fields that now house Vindolanda had long been
known for the Roman ruins they held when, in \313., a
nearby house was purchased by archaeologist Eric Birley.

NOVEMBER 2012 BRITISH HERITAGE • 51

Volunteers Tim Adams He oversaw a number of excavations and began to make approachable bunch, happy to answer any questions.
and Georgine Brabec sense of Vindolanda, scraping away the layers of history "Our main job is to make the information gathered
from Chicago return and solving the intricate riddle of the overlying forts, from the excavations available to the public," Andrew
regularly to excavate. leaving some of the remains in situ to help visitors un- explains in a break between shoveling soil. This is done
derstand the site. Paths wind alongside through the on-site museum, located in the house his
the preserved structures and visitors are grandfather purchased in 1929. Some of the best dis-
encouraged to walk through what re- coveries have been cleaned, preserved and displayed to
mains of the Roman buildings, pictur- the public here. As we slowly stroll around the site,
ing them as they were 2,000 years ago. Andrew tells me about some of the sensational finds.
Birley's archaeological genes and re- Stone, pottery and metal are usually the only clues
sponsibility for the Vindolanda exca- left behind, but the waterlogged, anaerobic ground at
vations were passed on to his sons, Vindolanda preserves many objects that would rot
Robin and Anthony, and his grand- quickly if they were buried elsewhere. A fine collection
son, Andrew, who is now Director of of leather footwear is housed in the nearby museum,
Excavations for the Vindolanda Trust. but the most impressive finds are undoubtedly the
Each summer Andrew heads a group wooden writing tablets.
of archaeologists who gather for a The Vindolanda tablets would not have survived in
new season of excavations. The normal soil conditions. They are thin, postcard-sized
trenches are laid out alongside the ex- wooden leaf-tablets bearing inscriptions in ink.
isting stone ruins so Vindolanda's First found in 1973 by Andrew's father Robin, the
summer visitors have the bonus of tablets catapulted Vindolanda into a small category of
being able to watch the excavations elite Roman archaeological sites.
take place. The archaeologists are an Some tablets record the military strength of the gar-
rison, but there are also personal messages
to and from soldiers, their families and
Visiting Vindolanda their slaves. The highlights include an in-
Vindolanda sits between Newcastle and Vindolanda website (www.vindolanda.com) vitation to a birthday party, probably the
Carlisle, 35 miles from each city, and is conve- contains information about opening times, ad- earliest known Latin document written by
niently reached by car. Most easily, hire one in mission prices and what there is to see at both a woman, or a report about the character-
Newcastle after taking the train fronn London Vindolanda and the Roman Army Museum. istics of the native Britons that refers to
(wvvw.eastcoast.co.uk). Take the A69 from Time your visit for midweek between April and them derisively as "Brittunculi" (wretched
either Newcastle or Carlisle and turn off at August and you should be able to view the live little Britons).
Bardon Mill. Alternatively, follow the more scenic archaeological excavations and see history un- "The tablets are a window into the soul
B6318 from Newcastle. The comprehensive covered in front of your own eyes! of the writer," Andrew explains. "It's like
reading a Roman soap opera."

52 • BRITISH HERITAGE NOVEMBER 2012 ABOVE IMAGES: fi VINDOLANDA TRUST; LEFT AND RIGHT: SCOTT REEVES
 Digging History
Volunteer exavators are asked to sign up online
(www.vindolanda.com) at the start of No-
And the show goes on. Tablets continue vember for the following sumnner season. Note Other archaeological excavations also accept
to be found: One was carefully extracted that places are offered on a first-come, first- volunteers, and opportunities are available in
from the ground only two weeks before my served basis and are snapped up extremely all corners of the British Isles. The best direc-
visit. More than 400 tablets have been dis- quickly, so be poised at your computer on the tory of all the fieldwork opportunities is
covered, but Andrew is still as keen to see necessary date! Excavations run from April to held by the Council for British Archaeology
this one cleaned and read as his father must August and volunteers can join for a minimum (www.britarch.ac.uk/briefing). The CBA also
have been when the first was found. of one week, a maximum of five. It costs £40 offers a wealth of information for those who
"It might provide us with some valuable a week, volunteers can also pay extra to stay in are interested in getting involved in Britain's
new information," Andrew said. "We the on-site Hedley Centre accommodation. ample archaeological past.
could find out about a new addressee, a
person we've not come across before."
This isn't Roman treasure hunting, this is the cutting had no experience when I first came here."
edge of historical research. The Vindolanda excava- "This site is a brilhant one for newcomers to dig,"
tions have specific objectives. Tim adds. "There's almost a guarantee that you'll find
"We have real research questions," said Andrew. something interesting."
"This year we are looking for the main source of water, That's certainly true for this pair. Two years ago,
and we're also interested in the relationship between Georgine found a quern for grinding grain inscribed with
the fort and the community around it." "Africanus," probably the name of a Roman soldier.
Outside the fort was a civilian settlement called a Africanus has now been adopted by the nearby Roman
vicus. The remnants of several rows of buildings and Army Museum, a sister museum to Vindolanda, and is
a large bathhouse can still be seen. It had been thought part of an audio-visual display that educates visitors
that there was a strict distinction between the soldiers about life in the Roman army.
inside forts and the civilians who lived outside them, "I enjoy coming back the following year and seeing
but the Vindolanda excavations are questioning that. how they build upon the knowledge," Georgine confides.
"There is evidence that some civilians were living in "And I'm amazed at the amount of work and effort
the fort and some soldiers were living outside," Andrew it takes to take something from deep underground to Your knees can get a
explains. "The number of military belt buckles we've the museum shelf," Tim adds. hit damp in the mud,
found in the civilian settlement shows that soldiers must Both the Vindolanda and Roman Army Museum hut the finds make it
have been living there—either that, or they kept taking make the most of the wealth of information that ar- all worthwhile.
their trousers off outside the fort for some reason!" chaeologists provide them. Both
have been recently renovated and
atching the excavations take place in front of have well-presented, interesting gal-
you is exciting enough, but there are oppor- leries. The Vindolanda Museum
tunities to pull on your wellies, sharpen your holds many objects that were lifted
trowel and get in the trench to dig history from the ground just meters away,
with your own hands. Every year, hundreds while the Roman Army Museum
of volunteers are welcomed to Vindolanda to help out looks at the wider picture of life in
with the archaeological excavations. the army with some terrifically in-
"There is a real community here," Andrew is proud formative audio-visual displays.
to say. "We have 650 volunteers each year, selected on Whether you come to Vindolanda
a first-come, first-served basis." to get your hands dirty in a trench
You would expect that such an important site would or stay clean and watch the archae-
be reserved for those with doctorates, but that could ologists at work, this is a site that
not be further from the truth. "No experience is nec- gets you up close and personal with
essary," Andrew continues. "We teach you everything the Romans who lived here nearly
you need to know." 2,000 years ago; visitors can walk
Volunteer excavators come from around the world, where they walked, touch what they
including from across the Atlantic. A husband and wife touched. As Andrew Birley puts it,
excavating team, Georgine Brabec and Tim Adams "When you come here, there is a
from Chicago, are regular attendees. feeling of continuity linking you di-
"It's exciting to walk where the Romans did," rectly to the Roman Empire and the
Georgine enthuses, "and it's not intimidating at all. I Roman world." ^

NOVEMBER 2012 BRITISH HERITAGE • 53

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