Current Archaeology 353

In 1849, John Collingwood Bruce led an expedition to Hadrian’s Wall to tour the Roman remains. Since then, this trip – known as the Pilgrimage of Hadrian’s Wall – has been repeated every ten years, and in recent decades CA has marked the anniversary with a special themed issue. With the latest band of Pilgrims heading to the frontier this month, CA 353 explores some of the major projects and key discoveries on the Wall since 2009 – I am hugely grateful to David Breeze for his invaluable help in pulling it all together.
/nWe begin with a snapshot of the community projects that play such a vital role in bringing the Wall’s secrets to light, followed by an overview of the history of the Pilgrimage, and of the direction of recent research on the Roman frontier.
/nArtefactual evidence is next in the spotlight, as we explore some of the key aspects of frontier life through the astonishingly diverse objects that have been excavated along its length, before we move on to specific sites that have revealed so much about military and civilian life on the Wall.
/nAt the eastern forts of South Shields and Wallsend, we find baths and protective deities, while Vindolanda, just south of the Wall, tells the story of a diverse population through an equally varied array of finds. At Birdoswald, we visit an eroding cremation cemetery and take a closer look at one particularly unusual urn, while monumental buildings, altars, and extra-mural occupation are our focus at Maryport.
/nFinally, we meet the inhabitants of Roman Carlisle, consider the unique challenges of managing the entire expanse of the Wall, and review some of the key books about the monument published in the last decade.