Spanning a forty-year career, this volume presents a selection of works by one of the foremost scholars of Romano-British epigraphy. Twenty contributions fall into four thematic sections: early military history of the conquest period up to the foundation of Hadrian's Wall; the developed frontiers of the high Empire; administration, urban governance, religion and trade in the province; and a segment dedicated to the later history of the province in the fourth century a.d.
Hassall's knowledge of the material and his ability to present often fragmentary British evidence in its wider European context are some of the strongest points of the collection, which offers an excellent overview of the role of epigraphy, and texts more generally, in understanding Britannia as a province.
The volume leans towards research on the army, highlighting the main debates in the military history of the province in recent decades. The papers illustrate the difficulties in reconciling ancient history with often contradictory archaeological data, covering subjects such as the movement of legions within the province (3–16); the location of Mons Graupius (80); the meaning of praesidia (80); the relationship between the Notitia Dignitatum and the archaeology of the late Roman frontier (219–36); and matching Saxon Shore forts with their Latin names (206–18). These contributions map the longer trajectory of Roman frontier studies progressively shifting their perspective towards reassessment of the relationship between archaeological remains and historical records. Elsewhere, H. addresses the structural history of the physical remains of frontiers in Britannia; exploring the use of work parties during the construction of the Antonine Wall (33–6) and the date of the rebuilding in stone of Hadrian's Wall (48), questions that continue to interest the research community today.
The collection reflects H.’s role as an advocate for the continuing relevance of military archaeology, for example in his contribution to the UNESCO Frontiers of the Roman Empire research framework for Hadrian's Wall. His questioning of assumptions about ‘rational men in unit record offices’, through drawing attention to examples of miscommunication, confusion and duplication of work in the fourth-century a.d. archive of Flavius Abinnaeus (193), highlights his influence in revising idealistic views of the Roman army. While notions of ‘garrisons of men without women’ appear occasionally (126), written two decades before the work of van Driel-Murray, Allison, Greene and others changed this view, they are representative of their time and show how frontier archaeology has developed. Throughout his career, H. has interpreted material that has shaped our understanding of the practices of Roman armies, including the dedication context of altars from Maryport (145) and Antonine Wall distance slabs (37–47), and provided syntheses of the material (55–68). In the section dedicated to Late Roman Britain, H. focuses on issues of the interpretation and context of the Notitia Dignitatum (191–205), the administrative hierarchy of the British diocese (219–36) and the chronology of the Saxon Shore (206–18).
Papers dedicated to urban organisation focus on early evidence of administrative management of cities in Britain (98–102), Colchester as an early capital (132–4) and the impact of Mediterranean urbanism on local nucleated settlements (116–29). A number of papers dedicated specifically to London provide an excellent overview of the evidence base for the city as a provincial capital. H. reviews the epigraphic evidence for Roman soldiers in London as speculatores, frumentarii and beneficiarii as well as commenting on the governor's guards (91–7), providing a glimpse into the presence of soldiers beyond frontier regions. This section provides a reflection on how the epigraphy of cities serves for tracing the administrative form and models of organisation but can only provide limited material on the cultural changes that accompanied Roman urbanism. The volume is also clear on the limitations of inscriptions for understanding civilian life and the interface between the military and the civilian spheres. This is well expressed in the analysis of the evidence on the movements of traders between Germania Inferior and Britannia (169–88), also illustrating how military networks facilitated individual enterprise.
The variety of themes included in the book encapsulates H.’s ability to cross over between civilian and military topics, but also allows reflection on the study of the province's epigraphy and its relationship with archaeology. This theme is evident in a number of papers dedicated to, or addressing the work of H.’s mentors, including Toynbee, Birley and Frere.
With its focus towards the significance and use of written Latin among the military community and in settlements in the frontier region, the volume is in fact about Britain as a literate province. Evidential bias towards the frontier area reminds us that the use of inscriptions was highly varied. As a result, the volume does not engage with the countryside or villa economy as these rarely produce epigraphy. With its combination of short, sharp and often daring contributions on specific topics with longer comprehensive overviews of epigraphic material, its distribution and limitations, this book is an excellent volume both as an introductory text and for seasoned readers wishing to look back at H.’s rich contribution to our understanding of the province of Britannia.
