The Roman Rural Settlement Project
Preliminary results from the east of England
The nature of the eastern
dataset
• 621 records of Roman sites
Settlements recorded through
finds scatters and metal
detecting (Taylor 2007 fig. 3.4)
Main types of site in the east of England dataset
Site type*
Bedfordshire
Cambridgeshire
Essex
Hertfordshire
Norfolk
Suffolk
Total
farm
field system
funerary site
iron production
other metal production
60
11
37
4
1
116
50
51
10
1
48
41
40
8
1
30
4
31
6
5
39
13
11
9
4
32
11
12
1
1
325
130
182
38
13
pottery production
10
18
10
7
18
11
74
quarry
RC temple
salt production
shrine
tile production
unwalled 'small town'**
8
7
3
3
7
5
3
3
2
3
2
2
3
2
8
1
4
1
1
7
2
6
15
2
4
3
3
30
11
11
38
6
16
villa
village**
6
3
18
6
11
7
10
5
5
9
5
7
55
37
*Record may have more than one site type
** Consolidated record data
2
Research theme 1: Chronology
All sites occupied in the Late Iron
Age
• 280 sites (46% of total) were occupied in the
Late Iron Age
All sites established mid to late 1st
century AD
• 156 sites (c 25% of total) were established during
mid-late 1st century AD
• 36% of sites with late Iron Age activity were
either abandoned or ‘transformed’
Roman sites with evidence for early
Saxon activity
• 90 Roman sites have evidence for early
Saxon activity (c 15% of total)
• 20% of total sites with late Roman activity
Distribution of all villas (in
relation to NMR ‘villas’)
• 55 villas within the dataset
• 171 possible villas within the NMR
dataset for the east region
Distribution of villas in use over time
Up to end 1st century AD
Up to mid 2nd century AD
Distribution of all farms
• 325 farms within the dataset
• Period of greatest extent in later 2nd C
AD
Farms established mid-late 1st C AD
Farms established early-mid 2nd C AD
Farms established mid-late 2nd C
AD
Distribution of all nucleated settlement
(‘villages’ and unwalled ‘small towns’)
in relation to major urban centres
• 53 nucleated settlements within the
dataset
Chronology summary
• Significant continuity of occupation/activity from late Iron Age
• Major changes occurring in the countryside during the early Roman
period
• Most villas established later 1st/early 2nd C AD
• Significant expansion of rural settlement in the NW (fen/fen-edge) from
mid/later 2nd C AD
• Nucleated sites show greatest evidence for longevity, from LIA to 5 th C
AD
Research theme 2: Rural settlement morphology
and architecture
• Site plans for 70% of records
• c 30% of records contain site plans
useful for characterising settlement
morphology
• Less than 5% ‘complete’ site plans
Enclosed farmsteads
Linear/developed farmsteads
‘Open’ farmsteads
Distribution of (A) linear/developed and (B) enclosed farms
Distribution of sites with circular and rectangular buildings
Domestic architectural forms and types
Morphology/architecture summary
• 30% of records contain site plans useful for characterising rural settlement morphology
• Basic breakdown of farmsteads into linear and enclosed types
• Clear chronological trend from LIA to late Roman period for increasing numbers of linear
farms and decreasing numbers of enclosed farms
• Circular and/or rectangular buildings recognised in 66% of rural settlement sites with clear
differentiation in density across region
• Association of rectangular buildings with villas and nucleated sites and circular buildings with
enclosed farms
• Increase in use of rectangular buildings and decrease in use of circular buildings over time
Research theme 3: Relationships of
rural to urban centres
• 3 major towns (Verulamium, Colchester and Caistor St
Edmund)
• 6 defended towns
• 33 minor ‘urban’ centres
• Closer affinity of villas than farms to major urban
centres (40% of villas within 10km compared with 24%
of farms)
• Very uneven degree of association of rural sites with
different urban centres
• Little apparent change in density of settlement around
urban centres over time
Research theme 4: Rural industry
• 74 sites with pottery production
• 10% of farms and villas
• 27% of nucleated settlement
• Widespread distribution but with certain ‘industry’
concentrations
• 28 sites with iron smelting
• 5% of farms and villas
• 15% of nucleated settlement
• Main concentration in the west
• 12 sites/areas with salt production
• 3 main areas: Fens, Blackwater estuary and Thames
estuary
Research theme 5: Religion
• 11 Romano-Celtic type temples
• Most in nucleated settlements or on periphery
of major urban centres
• Where known, all established c later 1st/early
2nd C AD
• 38 sites with interpretations of shrines
• 40% located in or near fenland zone
• Wide variety in chronology and form
Density of religious objects
Location of ‘structured deposits’
Research theme 6: Burial
• 240 sites (40%) produced some evidence for
funerary activity
• 3827 burials (1806 cremation and 2010
inhumation)
Cremation burials
Inhumation burials
Distribution of prone burials
• 64 prone burials
• 3.4% of total inhumation burials
Distribution of decapitation burials
• 94 decapitation burials
• 4.7% of total inhumation burials
Distribution of flexed burials
• 104 flexed burials
• 5.2% of total inhumation burials
Where do we go from here?
• Finish preliminary analysis of eastern data and writing up by end
of April 2013
• Further data collection, regional analyses and seminars until early
summer 2014
• Final analysis leading to website launch and national conference
in Reading in March 2015
• Final publication by August 2015