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Verulamium: Excavations within the Roman Town 1986–88

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 March 2010

Rosalind Niblett ,
William Manning  and
Christopher Saunders
Rosalind Niblett
Affiliation:
St Albans District Council, r_niblett@btinternet.com
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Abstract

Excavations in Insulae II, III and XIII in the southern half of Verulamium demonstrated the absence of occupation prior to the late first century and the relatively late development of the street grid in this area. This forced a re-evaluation of the date of the 1955 ditch, suggesting it was not dug until the Flavian period. The excavations also demonstrated that Watling Street had never bisected Insula XIII on the south-eastern side of the Forum-Basilica, thus negating a major argument for the presence of a Claudian fort under the centre of the later town. A restricted excavation in the northern corner of Insula XIII revealed evidence for the location of the town’s baths, while excavation in Insula XIII revealed a long sequence of industrial and domestic occupation stretching from the late first to early fifth centuries. Evidence for continued occupation into the fifth century or beyond was recovered from Insula II, and to a lesser extent, in Insula XIII.

Keywords

Roman BritainVerulamiumWatling StreetRoman bathsRoman fortbrewingRoman ditchesRoman food shop
Type
Articles
Information
Britannia , Volume 37 , November 2006 , pp. 53 - 188
Copyright
Copyright © Rosalind Niblett 2006. Exclusive Licence to Publish: The Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies

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