Vince Gaffney

Discovery of a 1st Century AD Roman Amphitheater and Other Structures at the Forum Novum by GPR

A Roman marketplace and town called the Forum Novum, initially began construction in the 1st century BC and flourished well into the 4th century AD. At present most of the town remains is below ground. The site is situated next to a completely restored 1st century AD church and a partially reconstructed marketplace. Ground penetrating radar surveys have been conducted at the Forum Novum during 1998 through 2001 field seasons to remotely detect buildings of this ancient town. Using 300 and 500MHz radar antennas and closely spaced radar profiles, time slice and 3-D volume analysis of the reflection data were computed. GPR surveys in the area detected a large oval-shaped structure 45meter along its major axis. This structure is from a 1st century AD Roman amphitheater. Subsequent excavations from one of the eight entrances reveal that the internal amphitheater oval is nearly a meter thick and is composed of a cemented stone wall buried 60cm below the ground surface. The time slices revealed completely differ...

Wroxeter Hinterland Project and geophysical survey at Wroxeter

This paper provides the overall archaeological context of a geophysical survey carried out at the Roman town at Wroxeter, including both excavation carried out within the town and survey and excavation within its hinterland. The geophysical survey at Wroxeter was carried out within the remit of the Wroxeter Hinterland Project. The archaeological rationale behind this project is explained and the contribution of geophysical survey data to achieving the goals of this project is discussed. Copyright

Forum Novum–Vescovio: Studying urbanism in the Tiber valley

The Roman town of Forum Novum lies in the Sabine hills to the northeast of Rome. Its study forms part of the British School at Romes Tiber Valley Project, a collaborative research initiative which studies the Tiber valley as the hinterland of Rome, tracing the impact of Romes development on the history of its settlement, economy, and cultural identity from 1000 B.C. to A.D. 1300 (Patterson and Millett 1999; Patterson et al. 2000) (fig. 1). The project draws on the extensive work carried out in this area to produce a new, material-based history of the valley. While the project seeks to re-evaluate past survey material, a vital contrast is provided by the development of new field projects to fill the gaps in settlement knowledge. Three main lacunae have been identified: the study of urban centres; the dearth of data from the E bank of the Tiber; and the poor understanding of the late-antique and early Mediaeval landscape. Forum Novum offers an opportunity to address all these lacunae. Urbanism forms a key research theme for the Tiber Valley Project. In marked contrast to the intensity of archaeological work on rural settlement in this area, there has been little systematic research on towns. Study has tended to concentrate on the excavation of monumental structures or, more rarely, the investigation of single and exceptional towns such as Ostia and Rome itself. Surprisingly little is known of the organization of the smaller towns and knowledge of their history is based largely on the epigraphic and documentary evidence.

The Viroconium Cornoviorum Atlas: high resolution, high precision non-invasive mapping of a Roman civitas capital in Britain

Abstract Accurate mapping of the 78-ha Roman town of Viroconium (modern-day Wroxeter in Shropshire, UK) in preparation for detailed research and site management proved a task that requires the use of modern information techniques. This article describes the creation of high spatial accuracy maps by the use of GPS-located gradiometer survey data in order to georeference available aerial photographs, and the use of digital processing of aerial photographs to obtain additional information invisible to the unaided eye. A GIS is being used to build a vectorized interpreted map of the town with a spatial error typically less than one metre. The results compare favourably with previous mapping efforts based on traditional methods.