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Further Evidence for Roman London Bridge?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 November 2011

Gustav Milne
Gustav Milne
Affiliation:
Department of Urban Archaeology, Museum of London
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Extract

Recent waterfront excavations on the Pudding Lane site in the City of London exposed a timber structure to the south of, and earlier than, a late first-century quay. This provisional report describes the structure and its context, and summarizes evidence for and against its identification as a pier-base for an early bridge across the Thames.

Type
Articles
Information
Britannia , Volume 13 , November 1982 , pp. 271 - 276
Copyright
Copyright © Gustav Milne 1982. Exclusive Licence to Publish: The Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies

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References

1 C. Roach Smith, Illustrations of Roman London (1859), 21-2; G. Parsloe, ‘Notes on the site of the Roman bridge at London’, RCHM (England): An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in London, Vol. III, Roman London (1928), 192, note 1; R. Merrifield, The Roman City of London (1965), 116-17; G. Dawson, ‘Roman London bridge’, London Archaeologist 1.5 (1969), 114-17; G. Dawson, ‘Roman London Bridge, part 2: its location’, London Archaeologist 1.7 (1970), 156-60.

2 R. Merrifield and H. Sheldon, ‘Roman London Bridge - a view from both banks’, London Archaeologist 2.8 (1974), 185.

3 Parsloe, op. cit. (note 1), 194.

4 Merrifield and Sheldon, op. cit. (note 2), 191.

5 Site record compiled by G. C. Dunning in 1929-31 housed in Museum of London; see G. Marsh, ‘Appendix 1 – Regis House’ in A. C. Anderson and A. S. Anderson (eds) Roman Pottery Research in Britain and North-West Europe, BAR Int. Ser. 123 (1981), 221-4, fig. 11.17.

6 L. Miller, ‘Miles Lane: the early Roman waterfront’, London Archaeologist forthcoming; D. Jones and M. Rhodes, Excavations at Billingsgate Buildings, London Middlesex Arch. Soc. Spec. Pap. No. 4 (1980); Hobley, B. and Schofield, J., ‘Excavations in the City of London’, Antiq. Journ. 56 (1977), 31–66CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Schofield, J. and Miller, L., ‘New Fresh Wharf I: the Roman waterfront’, London Archaeologist 2.15 (1976), 390–5Google Scholar.

7 All pottery dates in this report are provisional, and were kindly supplied by Dr P. Tyers, Museum of London, DUA.

8 Miller, op. cit. (note 6).

9 The analysis of the dendrochronological samples from all three structures by Jennifer Hillam, University of Sheffield, should clarify this point.

10 Tatton-Brown, T., ‘Roman London: some current problems’, London Archaeologist 2.8 (1974), 196–7; H. Cuppers, Die Trier Romerbriicken (1969), 202, Abb. 172Google Scholar.

11 Cüppers, op. cit. (note 10), 176-202 presents an illustrated catalogue of stone (and timber) pier-bases for Roman bridges found in Germany, Switzerland, France and England.

12 Jackson, D. A. and Ambrose, T. M., ‘A Roman timber bridge at Aldwincle, Northamptonshire’, Britannia vii (1976), 39–52CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

13 Cüppers, op. cit. (note 10).

14 ibid., 198, Abb. 169.

16 ibid., 185, Abb. 156.

16 cf. Trier, where the first bridge was built in c. A.D. 40 and replaced in c. 140: Cuppers, op. cit. (note 10).

17 Acknowledgment must be made to the Area F excavation team, especially Peter Cardiff and Philip Claris; Chrissie Milne for the illustrations; Jon Bailey and Trevor Hurst for PLATES XXVI A and B respectively; many members of the Museum of London for their helpful comments.