EMF - Abstracts

November 2001

 

Fighting Boredom: Roman soldiers as crasftsmen.

David Dungworth (English Heritage)

Archaeological excavations within the north-east sector of the Roman fort of Houseseads on Hadrian's Wall, Northumberland recovered several kilogrammes of crucible, mould, slag, scrap metal and metal spillages used in the production of small copper alloy fittings such as belt buckles. This assemblage is large compared to those normally recovered from Roman military sites in Britain and is especially significant in the range of debris recovered. The material has been examined in detail using XRF and SEM-EDS to understand,
1) the chemcial and physical processes involved in casting copper alloys, and
2) the sorts of objects being made.

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