The Field – August 2019

134 WWW.THEFIELD.CO.UK

Inthe120s,asEmperorHadrianordered

hisnortherlywalltobebuilt,thegarrisonat

Vindolandacompriseda dynamic,multicul-

turalcombinationofsoldiers,includingthe

FirstCohortofTungriansfrommodern-day

Belgium,a detachmentofVardullicavalry-

menfromnorthernSpainandtheBatavians

fromtheregionwenowknowastheNether-

lands,who’dmadea nameforthemselvesas

highlyeffectivekillers,clearing this remote

landscapeofresistance.

Vindolanda probably held more than

1,000soldiersat thistime,plusthousands

more dependants, including slaves and

freedmen. It grew to encompass a mul-

titude of craftsmenand tradespeople, in

additiontoanimals–fromcavalryhorses

tohuntingdogs–plus,ofcourse,women

andchildren. What’sstriking todayisthat

the moreadvanced aspectsof lifehere –

window glass, flushing toilets, intricate

locksandunder-floorheating– wouldbe

absentagainintheregionfora millennium

or more after their departure.

The tablets

are like postcards

from antiquity. One

complains about

the local roads

To be sure, some form of settlement

remainedhereafterRomantimesuntilthe

ninthcentury,followingwhichthesitewas

abandonedandfellintodisrepair.Inthe17th

century, farmerscleared trees andbushes

fromtheland,helpingthemselvestostone

for farm buildings. They began discover-

ingthingssuchasurns,potsandcoins.The

landcameunder thecontrolofprotective

owners and in 1929, Eric Birley, a young

scholarworkingonHadrian’sWall,acquired

thesiteatauctionandbegan a series of con-

trolledexcavations.

In1973,Eric’sson,Robin,startedunearth-

ing writing tablets – our oldest surviving

handwrittendocuments.Theyarelikepost-

cards from antiquity: wafer-thin pieces of

woodwrittenonininkandoftenrepresent-

ing rambunctious missives – demanding

more beer, for example. One complains

aboutthelocalroads.Somerefertoimpor-

tantbusinessaffairswhileothersaremerely

doodles. A panel of experts at the British

Museumvoted themourtoptreasure,and

theywhettheappetitefora spotofdigging.

Eachyear,volunteers canapplytojoin

the excavations on the first Monday in

Above,fromtop:volunteerSarahBakerandherunforgettablesworddiscovery;theRomanArmyMuseum’s
THE VINDOLANDA TRUST; ALAMY incredible shoe wall; Marta Alberti and the writer at the current dig location in the northern defences