Good morning, campers!

For some people, there’s nothing nicer than a spot of camping during the holidays, but have you any idea of the logistics involved in taking a few legionaries camping? If you thought building a stone wall (and turf-and-timber rampart) from coast to coast was bad, wait till you hear about Roman camping whilst you do it.

Camp construction on Trajan’s Column

In order to construct Hadrian’s Wall, and then the Vallum, and then the forts, the army needed somewhere to stay. This was provided by the temporary camp, something all soldiers built every night when on the march, when on campaign, or even for practice, when they had nothing better to do. The principle was simple: divide your force into groups, some of whom stood around and protected those actually building it, who then began by digging a ditch with mattocks and, using baskets to shift it, piling the resultant spoil within a double-faced wall of turves which they had already stripped, thereby forming a rampart. This activity is shown on Trajan’s Column, although the artists didn’t understand what was happening and depicted the turves as stone blocks. Vegetius makes clear there was one guiding principle: the greater the threat from the enemy, the deeper the ditch (and bigger the rampart). Camps had gaps in the defences, rather than gates, but these openings were protected by traverses (and guards, naturally) to deter attack by an enemy. To finish the whole thing off, obstacles were placed on the completed rampart.

Reconstructed camp corner at Oyne

The soldiers needed somewhere to sleep in the field and for this they had tents made of sewn leather panels. These are also shown in use on the Column. Each tent took something like 77 goat hides and was intended to house a contubernium of eight men. Around Hadrian’s Wall, leather panels from tents are known from Birdoswald, Carlisle, and Vindolanda, the last site producing a couple of substantial chunks of tent with the panels still attached to each other.

Reconstruction leather tent

Tents were supported on a frame and held up with a system of guy ropes and tent pegs. Most tent reconstructions opt for seven ropes on either side, four bracers at the corner, and one at either end to support the ridge pole, so twenty in all. Of course, each guy rope needed a tent peg. Wooden pegs have been found in large numbers associated with actual examples of leather tent panels and were simply made to a form you can still buy today. Pegs from Ribchester (Lancs.) came in two main sizes, possibly matching the smaller tents of the men and the larger ones of their centurions.

Modern wooden tent peg

Now you may have seen iron pegs with rings in the top described as tent pegs in some books or museums. In fact, the Greek writer Polybius (a big fan of the Roman army) describes (fragment 95) pegs being used by the Celtiberians to tether horses. But that’s not the only reason they weren’t used as tent pegs. Each century needed 220 pegs; made out of wood, they would weigh only 11kg, but iron would be closer to 70kg.

Rolled up, a contubernium tent looked like a pupa or chrysalis, so the soldiers called a tent papilio (butterfly). A modern goatskin reconstruction of the tent by the Ermine Street Guard was found to weigh 43.5kg which, despite waterproofing, could take on 8kg of water. Tents were transported by means of contubernium mules and each had to carry it, the tent-poles, the pegs (hence wooden ones being better), and probably a hand-mill too.

In the field, the Roman army used clamp ovens to bake their bread. These resembled the ovens found around the ramparts of permanent bases, so to that extent provided similar facilities to what they were used to. Everybody likes to play the game of Can You Fit Eight Men In A Tent?, but since a proportion of any force was on duty at all times, the question never arose. It is harder to know whether a ground sheet was used or what the soldiers used for bedding (‘their cloaks’ is the usual suggestion) but they clearly coped. Camps were usually placed next to a water source, fresh water always being drawn off above the location of the inevitable latrine facilities.

Don’t go away with the impression that camping was unusual for a Roman soldier. They knew two ways of life: a winter season in their hiberna, and a summer campaigning one in their aestiva. This was what the Roman army did and they did it well. After a hard day’s work building Hadrian’s Wall, the soldiers would have returned to their construction camp to eat and sleep. What could be more fun in a British summer?!

Remember the builders of Hadrian’s Wall next time you go camping. You’ve got it easy by comparison.

PLV Stanegate Inscriptions (Corbridge)

Introduction

Although Corbridge began in the 1st century AD as a standard military site with an attendant civilian presence, in the 2nd century it evolved into a civil site with a small, yet significant, military presence. Moreover, despite the proximity of Hadrian’s Wall, Corbridge was always more concerned with a) the crossing of the Tyne by Dere Street; b) access to Caledonia via Dere Street; and finally c) the Stanegate itself. Consequently, these three factors need to be borne in mind when considering its inscriptions.

The fact that a remote ecclesiastical site, Hexham, is a major source for inscriptions from the site reflects its proximity to Corbridge and the convenience of deriving worked stone from the Roman site. There is no guarantee that inscriptions from Hexham derive from Corbridge, but it is on balance more likely than any of the other nearby sites, such as Chesters, due to the monumental nature of both the architectural and textual contributions amongst the assemblage.

Inventory

RIB 1120: Apollini / Mapono / Q(uintus) Terentius / Q(uinti) f(ilius) Ouf(entina) / Firmus Saen(a) / praef(ectus) castr(orum) / leg(ionis) VI v(ictricis) p(iae) f(idelis) / d(onum) d(edit) (‘For Apollo Maponus Quintus Terentius Firmus, son of Quintus, of the Oufentina voting-tribe, camp prefect of the Sixth Legion Victrix, willingly and deservedly fulfilled a vow’). Altar found c.1866 near the SE corner of Hexham Abbey. Source: RIB I p.368

RIB 1121: [Ap]ollini / Mapon[o] / [Calpu]rnius / […] trib(unus) / dedicavit (‘For Apollo Maponus, Calpurnius … tribune dedicated this’). Altar found before 1724 used as the village cross in Corbridge. Source: RIB I p.368

RIB 1122: [Deo] / [M]apo[no] / Apo[llini] / P(ublius) Ae[…]/lus c(enturio) [leg(ionis) VI] / [V]ic(tricis) v(otum) [s(olvit) l(ibens) m(erito)] (‘For the god Apollo Maponus, Publius Ae…lus, centurion of the Sixth Legion Victrix willingly and deservedly fulfilled a vow’). Altar found before 1732 in Hexham Abbey crypt. Source: RIB I p.369

RIB 1123: Deo / Arecurio / Apollinaris / Cassi v(otum) s(olvit) l(ibens) m(erito) (‘For the god Mercury, Apollinaris, son of Cassius, willingly and deservedly fulfilled a vow’). Relief found 1936 on the NE side of Site 11. Source: RIB I p.370

RIB 1124

RIB 1124: Ἀστ[άρ]της / βωμόν μ᾿/ ἐσορᾰς / Ποῠλχέρ μ᾿ / ἀνέθηκεν (‘You see me, an altar of Astarte, Pulcher set me up’). Altar found before 1754 ‘in the vicar’s glebe’. Source: RIB I p.370

RIB 1125: Concordi/ae leg(ionis) VI / Vi(ctricis) P(iae) F(idelis) et / leg(ionis) XX (‘For Harmony between the Sixth Legion Victrix Pia Fidelis and the Twentieth Legion’). Dedication slab found in 1907 near N door of nave aisle of Hexham Abbey. Source: RIB I p.371

RIB 1126: Ara(m) / Dian(ae) / posui(t) / N[…] (‘N… set up an altar for Diana’). Altar found in 1939 in site clearance at Corbridge. Source: RIB I p.371

RIB 1127

RIB 1127: Discipuli/nae / Augustorum / leg(io) / II / Aug(usta) (‘For the Discipline of the Emperors, the Second Legion Augusta (set this up)’). Statue base found in strongroom of W compound HQ at Corbridge in 1912. Source: RIB I p.371

RIB 1128: [Disci]p(linae) Augusto[rum?] / [milit]es coh(ortis) I V[ar]/[dullo]rum m(illiariae) [c(ivium) R(omanorum) eq(uitatae)] / [cui] praees[t Pub(lius)] / [Calpur]nius Vic[tor tr(ibunus)] (‘For the Discipline of the Emperors, soldiers of the First Cohort of Vardulli, one thousand strong, Roman citizens, part-mounted, which is commanded by Publius Calpurinius Victor, tribune, (set this up).’). Dedication slab found before 1821 in Hexham. Source: RIB I pp.371-2

RIB 1129

RIB 1129: Ἡρακλεῐ / Τνρίω(ι) / Διοδώρα / ἀρχιέρια (‘For Heracles of Tyre, Diadora the priestess (set this up)’). Altar found before 1702 in Corbridge, moved to churchyard. Now in the British Museum. Source: RIB I p.372

RIB 1130

RIB 1130: I(ovi) O(ptimo) M(aximo) / [p]ro salut[e] / [v]exillatio/num leg(ionum) XX [V(aleriae) v(ictricis)] / et VI vic(tricis) mi[lites] / [a]ge[n]t(es) in p[…] (‘For Iupiter Best and Greatest, for the well-being of a vexillation of the Twentieth Legion Valeria Victrix and Sixth Legion Victrix, soldiers in garrison…’). Altar found 1886 in demolishing a cottage. Source: RIB I pp.372-3

RIB 1131

RIB 1131: Iovi Aeterno / Dolicheno / et Caelesti / Brigantiae / et Saluti / C(aius) Iulius Ap/ol(l)inaris / |(centurio) leg(ionis) VI iuss(u) dei (‘For eternal Iupiter Dolichenus and Caelestis Brigantia and Salus, Gaius Iulius Apolinaris, centurion of the Sixth Legion, (set this up) at command of the god’). Altar found 1910 as a kerb stone S of Site 11. Source: RIB I p.373

RIB 1132: [Deo Marti] / Ul[tori vex(illatio) leg(ionis)] / VI [Vic(tricis) P(iae) F(idelis) sub] / Cn(aeo) Iul(io) [Vero leg(ato) Aug(usti)] / per L(ucium) O[…] / trib(unum) [militum] (‘… a detachment of the Sixth Legion Pia Fidelis under Gnaeus Iulius Verus, governor, through Lucius O…, military tribune’). Statue base found in 1908 near Site 11. Source: RIB I pp.373-4

RIB 1133: [D]e[o] / Merc(urio) (‘For the god Mercury’). Fragment of a relief found in 1940 S of the E granary. Source: RIB I p.374

RIB 1134: Deae M[inervae] / T(itus) Tertini[us …] / libr(arius) ex [voto pos(uit)] (‘For the goddess Minerva Titus Tertinius … clerk, set this up in accordance with a vow’). Statuette base found 1804 on the W part of the Roman site. Source: RIB I p.374

RIB 1135: B(ona) F(ortuna) / deae / Pantheae / [… (‘For the good fortune of the goddess Panthea…’). Altar found 1913 in the E granary. Source: RIB I p.374

RIB 1136: Deo san(cto) Silvan[o] / [milite]s vexil/[lat(ionis) leg(ionis)] II Aug(ustae) et c[ol]/[le]g[ium] Si[l]vaniano/rum aram de suo pos(uerunt) / vol(entes) lib(entes) (‘For the sacred god Silvanus, soldiers of the detachment of the Second Legion Augusta and the cavalry unit of… freely and willingly gave this altar from their own resources’). Altar found at Orchard (Hole) Farm before 1865. Source: RIB I pp.374-5

RIB 1137

RIB 1137: [[Soli Invicto]] / vexillatio / leg(ionis) VI Vic(tricis) P(iae) F(idelis) f(ecit) / sub cura Sex(ti) / Calpurni Agrico/lae leg(ati) Aug(usti) pr(o) pr(aetore) (‘[[For the Invincible Sun]], a detachment of the Sixth Legion Victrix built this under the governor Sextus Calpurnius Agricola’). Dedication slab found in 1911 in the roadway S of Site 11. Source: RIB I p.375

RIB 1138: Victoriae / Aug(ustae) / L(ucius) Iul(ius) Iuli[anus] / […]us [… (‘For the Victory of the Emperor, Lucius Iulius Iulianus…’). Altar found before 1732 in a cottage near The Hermitage E of the confluence of the N and S Tynes. Source: RIB I p.376

RIB 1139: Deo / Veteri (‘For the god Veteris’). Altar found E of Site 11 in 1936. Source: RIB I p.376

RIB 1140: Deo / Vit/iri (‘For the god Vitiris’). Altar found during Wm Coulson’s excavations on the N bridge abutment in 1862. Source: RIB I p.376

RIB 1141: Vit(eri) / M/iti(us?) (‘For Viteris, Mitius (set this up)’). Altar found 1939 in road E of Site 39. Source: RIB I p.376

RIB 1142: LEG() A[…] / Q(uintus) Calpurnius / Concessini/us praef(ectus) eq(uitum) / caesa Cori/onototar/um manu pr/aesentissimi / numinis dei v(otum) s(olvit) (‘Quintus Calpurnius Concessinius, prefect of cavalry, after killing a band of Corionototae, fulfilled a vow to the most effective spirit of the god’). Altar found 1725 in the crypt at Hexham Abbey. Now lost. Source: RIB I p.376

RIB 1143: …]sit […] / […]norus / [… pr]aep(ositus) cu/[ram] agens / horr(eorum) tempo/[r]e expeditio/nis felicissi(mae) / Brittannic(ae) / v(otum) s(olvit) l(ibens) m(erito) (‘…praepositus placed in charge of the granaries at the time of the Most Fortunate British Expedition willingly and freely fulfilled a vow’). Altar found in the W granary in 1908. Source: RIB I pp.376-7

RIB 1144: …] / L[eg(io) …] (‘… legion…’). Pedestal found 1907 E of Site 8 fountain. Source: RIB I p.377

RIB 1145: VMD (‘?’). Altar found 1908 on Site 11. Source: RIB I p.377

RIB 1146: ? (‘?’). Altar fragment (illegible) in Corbridge church yard. Source: RIB I p.378

RIB 1147

RIB 1147: [Imp(eratori)] T(ito) Aelio / Anionino [Au]g(usto) Pio II co(n)s(uli) / sub cura Q(uinti) Lolii Urbici / [leg(ati) A]ug(usti) pr(o) pr(aetore) leg(io) II Aug(usta) f(ecit) (‘For the Emperor Titus Aelius Antoninus Augustus Pius, twice consul, under the charge of Quintus Lollius Urbicus, propraetorian Emperor’s legate, the Second Legiuon Augusta built this’). DEdication found 1935 in W granary. Source: RIB I p.378

RIB 1148

RIB 1148: Imp(eratori) Caes(ari) [T(ito)] Ael[io] / Antonino A[ug(usto)] Pi[o] / III co(n)[s(uli) p(atri) p(atriae)] / sub cura Q(uinti) [Lolli Urbici] / leg(ati) Au[g(usti) pr(o) pr(aetore)] / leg(io) II A[ug(usta) fecit] (‘For the Emperor Caesar Titus Aelius Antoninus Augustus Pius, thrice consul, father of his country, under the charge of Quintus Lollius Urbicus, propraetorian Emperor’s legate, the Second Legion Augusta built this’). Dedication found 1907 in E granary. Source: RIB I pp.378-9

RIB 1149

RIB 1149: Imperato[ribus Caesaribus] / M(arco) Aurelio A[ntonino Aug(usto) tribuniciae] / potestati[s XVII] co(n)s(uli) [III et L(ucio) Aur/elio Vero Aug(usto)] A[rmeniaco trib/uniciae potestati]s I[II] co[(n)s(uli)] II / [vexillatio leg(ionis) XX] V(aleriae) V(ictricis) fecit su[b c]ura / [Sexti Calpurni] Agrico[l]ae / [legati Augustoru]m pr(o) pr(aetore) (‘For the Emperors Caesars Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus, with tribunician power for the 17th time, consul thrice, and Lucius Aurelius Verus Augustus Armeniacus, with tribunician power for the 3rd time, consul twice, a detachment of the Twentieth Legion Valeria Victrix built this under the charge of Sextus Calpurnius Agricola, Emperor’s propraetorian legate’). Fragmentary dedication found in three separate locations in 1702, 1912, and 1938. Source: RIB I p.379

RIB 1150: I[mp(eratori) (‘For the Emperor…’). Fragment of a dedication found on the site of the W gate of the fort at Corbridge in 1953. Source: RIB I p.380

RIB 1151: Imp(erator) Caes(ar) L(ucius) Sep(timius) [S]everus Pi(us) / Pertinax et Imp(erator) C[a]esar M(arcus) / Aur(elius) Antoninu[s] Pius Aug/usti [[et P(ublius) Septi[mi]us Geta]] / [[Caesar]] horre[u]m [per] / vexillatione[m leg(ionis) …] / fecerunt su[b L(ucio) Alfeno] / [Senecione leg(ato) Aug(ustorum) pr(o) pr(aetore)] (‘For the Emperor Caesar Lucius Septimius Severeus Pius Pertinax and Emperor Caesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Pius Augustus and Publius Septimius Geta Caesar built this granary through the agency of the … Legion under Lucius Alfenus Senecio, Emperor’s pro praetorian legate’). Dedication found a) in 1725 in the Anglo-Saxon crypt and b) in 1907 in the Anglo-Saxon NW tower at Hexaham Abbey. Source: RIB I pp.380-1

RIB 1152

RIB 1152: …]CA[…] / [Tere]ntio (?) Paulin[o p(rae)p(osito)] / [a]g(ente) in praeten[tura] (‘…Terentius Paulinus, commander, on frontier garrison duty…’). Dedication slab found 1902 at Corbow (Roman Corbridge). Source: RIB I p.381

RIB 1153

RIB 1153: Imperatorib(us) / Caesaribus / [M(arco) A]urelio An/[tonino et (‘For the Emperor-Caesars Marcus Aurelius Antoninus and…’). Dedication slab found 1902 at Corbow (Roman Corbridge). Source: RIB I p.381

RIB 1154

RIB 1154: Vexillus / leg(ionis) II Aug(ustae) (‘detachment of the Second Legion Augusta’). Decorative slab found at Corbridge in the E granary in 1907. Source: RIB I pp.381-2

RIB 1155

RIB 1155: Leg(ionis) II / Aug(ustae) / coh(ors) III f(ecit) (‘Second Legion Augusta, Third Cohort built this’). Building stone found at Corbridge, probably in 1755. Source: RIB I p.382

RIB 1156

RIB 1156: Leg(ionis) II Aug(ustae) / coh(ors) III (‘Second Legion Augusta the Third Cohort (built this)’). Building stone found in 1883 in the Cor Burn W of Corbridge. Source: RIB I p.382

RIB 1157: Leg(ionis) II Aug(ustae) / coh(ors) IIII f(ecit) (‘Second Legion Augusta the Fourth Cohort built this’). Building stone found 1711 reused in the NE corner of Corbridge church. Now lost. Source: RIB I p.382

RIB 1158: …]ce / [leg(io) II Au]g(usta) / [fec(it)] (‘… the Second Legion Augusta (built this)’). Building stone found before 1855 at Corbridge, now built into shop W of marketplace. Source: RIB I pp.382-3

RIB 1159: Leg(io) / VI Vic(trix) / fe[c(it)] (‘the Sixth Legion Victrix built this’). Building stone found 1937 W of Site 39. Source: RIB I p.383

RIB 1160: Leg(io) VI Vic(trix) P(ia) F(idelis) (‘The Sixth Legion Victrix Pia Fidelis (built this)’). Building stone found 1829 at Corbridge. Source: RIB I p.383

RIB 1161: Instante / Fl(avio) Hygin(o) / c(enturione) leg(ionis) VI v(ictricis) (‘Under the direction of Flavius Hyginus, centurion of the Sixth Legion Victrix’). Building stone found in the chapter house of Hexham Abbey. Source: RIB I p.383

RIB 1162: Legio(nis) VI / pi(a)e f(idelis) vex(illatio) / refe(cit) (‘A detachment of the Sixth Legion Victrix Pia Fidelis rebuilt this’). Building stone found 1856 at the junction of Stagshaw Bank and Cow Lane. Source: RIB I p.383

RIB 1163: Vexi[llatio] / leg(ionis) V[I vic(tricis) p(iae) f(idelis)] / sub c[ura Viri] / Lup[i v(iri) c(larissimi) co(n)s(ularis)] (‘A detachment of the Sixth Legion Victrix Pia Fidelis under the command of Virius Lupus, of senatorial status and of consular rank (built this)’). Dedication slab found 1912 in the strongroom of Site 45. Source: RIB I p.384

RIB 1164: [Le]g(io) / XX V(aleria) V(ictrix) / [fec]it (‘The Twentieth Legion Valeria Victrix built this’). Building stone found 1907 on Site 8. Source: RIB I p.384

RIB 1165: [Leg(io)] XX V(aleria) [v(ictrix)] / [fec]it (‘The Twentieth Legion Valeria Victrix built this’). Building stone found 1907 on Site 8. Source: RIB I p.384

RIB 1166

RIB 1166: Leg(ionis) XX V(aleriae) v(ictricis) / coh(ors) VII (‘Twentieth/Thirtieth Legion Valeria/Ulpia Victrix Seventh Cohort (built this)’). Building stone found 1912 near Site 45. Source: RIB I p.384

RIB 1167

RIB 1167: c(enturia) Tu(lli) Cap(i)t(onis) / coh(ortis) VI / QD de(dit) (‘The century of Tullius Capito, Sixth Cohort, QD gave this’). Building stone found 1940 between apsidal building and Site 40S. Source: RIB I p.385

RIB 1168: …] / C[… (‘… C…’). Dedication slab found 1912 on Site 39 or 40. Source: RIB I p.385

RIB 1169: coh(ortis) VIIII c(enturia) Ma/rci Coma(ti) (‘Ninth Cohort, the century of Marcius Comatus (built this)’). Centurial stone found in 1885, now built into W end of nave of Hexham Abbey. Source: RIB I p.385

RIB 1170: Iulian/us (‘Iulianus’). Building stone found on Site 43. Source: RIB I p.385

RIB 1171

RIB 1171: [D(is)] M(anibus) / [Ba]rathes Pal/myrenus vexil(l)a(rius) / vixit an(n)os LXVIII (‘For the immortal shades, Barathes the Palmyrene, a vexillarius, lived 68 years’). Tombstone found 1910 reused in flooring on Site 23. Source: RIB I p.385

RIB 1172

RIB 1172: Dis Manibus / Flavinus / eq(ues) alae Petr(ianae) signifer / tur(ma) Candidi an(norum) XXV / stip(endiorum) VII h(ic) s(itus) (‘For the immortal shades, the cavalryman Flavinus of the ala Petriana, a standard-bearer in the turma of Candidus, lived 25 years, served 7, lies here’). Tombstone found 1881 in the foundations of the porch of the S transept of Hexham Abbey. Source: RIB I p.386

RIB 1173: D(is) [M(anibus)] / [I]ul(io) Ca[ndi]/do Da[..] / h(eres) f(aciendum) [c(uravit)] (‘For the immortal shades, Iulius Candidus, Da.. his heir had this set up’). Tombstone found before 1929 in the vicarage stable at Corbridge. Source: RIB I p.386

RIB 1174: D(is) M(anibus) / Iul(ius) Primus / con[iu]gi c(arissimae) / p(onendum) c(uravit) (‘For the immortal shades, Iulius Firmus, set this up for his most dear wife’). Tombstone found 1895 at Trinity Terrace. Source: RIB I p.387

RIB 1175: L(ucio) Val(erio) Ius[t]o / mil(iti) leg(ionis) VI / Egn(atius) Dyonysi/us et Sur(ius) Ius/[t]us her(edes) f(aciendum) c(uraverunt) (‘Lucius Valerius Iustus, soldier of the Sixth Legion Victrix, his heirs Egnatius Dionysius and Surius Iustus, set this up’). Tombstone found 1802 on W part of Roman Corbridge. Source: RIB I p.387

RIB 1176: [Dis] / [Manibus] / Ti[b(eri) …] / Pa[… (‘For the immortal shades, Tiberius …’). Tombstone found before 1883 in a wall on the NW side of Bridge market place. Source: RIB I p.387

RIB 1177: D(is) M(anibus) / miles / leg(ionis) II [Aug(ustae)] / [… (‘For the immortal shades, a soldier of the Second Legion Augusta …’). Tombstone found before 1907 in the Vicar’s Pele in Corbridge. Source: RIB I p.387

RIB 1178: … em]erit[o ex e]q(uite) alae […] / […]ae / [… (‘…emeritus, formerly cavalryman in the … ala‘). Tombstone fragment found 1886 in Corbridge church. Source: RIB I p.388

RIB 1179: …]icinicivi […]/rauthus et […]/arfaiaucus [et …] / […] et Scu[…] / […]co [… (‘?’). Tombstone fragment found before 1860 E of The Seal in Heexham. Source: RIB I p.388

RIB 1180

RIB 1180: D(is) M(anibus) / Ahteh(a)e / fil(iae) Nobilis / vixit an(n)is / V (‘For the immortal shades, Ahteha, daughter of Nobilis, lived 5 years’). Tombstone found reused in late road S of Site 11. Source: RIB I pp.388-9

RIB 1181

RIB 1181: D(is) M(anibus) / Sudrenus / Ertol(a)e nomine / Vellibia felicissi/m(a)e vixit an(n)is IIII / diebus LX (‘For the immortal shades, Sudrenus (set this up) for Ertola, called Velibia, she lived most happily for 4 years and 60 days’). Tombstone found reused in late road S of Site 11. Source: RIB I p.389

RIB 1182: Iulia Mate[r]/na an(norum) VI Iul(ius) / Marcellinus / filiae carissimae (‘Iulia Materna lived 6 years, Iulius Marcellinus for his dearest daughter (set this up)’). Tombstone found about 1861 in the W end of Corbridge church. Source: RIB I p.389

RIB 1183

RIB 1183: [D(is) M(anibus)] s(acrum) / [… (‘For the immortal shades, sacred …’). Tombstone fragment found in 1910 in topsoil S of Site 11. Source: RIB I p.389

RIB 1184: D(is) M(anibus) / Mo[… (‘For the immortal shades…’). Tombstone found 1911 on Site 29. Source: RIB I p.389

RIB 1185: […]llon(ius) Lu/[…]cius (‘?’). Building stone found 1907 on Site 5 (40). Source: RIB I p.390

RIB 1186: [Coh(ors) I(?)] / Ling(onum) / Iliom/[arus? (‘First Cohort of Lingones, Iliomarus…’). Building stone found in 1910 E of Site 11. Source: RIB I p.390

RIB 1187: …]IVS BA[…] / […]X A[…] / […]VB IRA[…] / […]ANIVI[…] / […] EFMATER[… (‘?’). Tombstone fragment in W tower of Corbridge church found in 1886. Source: RIB I p.390

RIB 1188: …] / BIS I[…] / VAL[… (‘?’). Dedication slab fragment found before 1730. Source: RIB I p.390

RIB 1189: …] D(e) s(uo) [p(osuit?)] (‘… set this up from his own resources.’). Slab found 1942 in aqueduct north of Site 8. Source: RIB I p.391

RIB 1190: …]IE[…] / […]TITICIA[…] / […]VI BRIV[…] / […]TAE […] / […] L(egio) VI Vic(tri…) F (‘… Sixth Legion Victrix …’). ?Building stone found 1760 at Corbridge, now lost. Source: RIB I p.391

RIB 1191: Le(gio) [… (‘… legion …’). Panel fragment found 1934 on Site 39. Source: RIB I p.391

RIB 1192: NI (‘?’). Gutter stone found in 1911, now lost. Source: RIB I p.391

RIB 1193: …]O NO [… (‘?’). Inscription found in Hexham Abbey crypt around 1887, now lost. Source: RIB I p.391

RIB 1194: …]VE[I… (‘?’). Fragment found 1911 at Corbridge, now lost. Source: RIB I p.391

RIB 1195: Vic[…] (‘?’). Building stone found at Corbridge 1906-14. Source: RIB I p.391

RIB 1196: a) VII // VIII // XV(?) // XVIII // XX b) X / VIII // X / IIIIV (‘7, 8, 15(?), 18, 20 10/8, 10/9(?)’). Voussirs found 1908 at Corbridge on Site 11, now lost. Source: RIB I p.392

RIB 1197: VIIII (‘9’). Building stone found at Corbridge 1906-14. Source: RIB I p.392

RIB 3293: VO[…] / […]Ael[…] (‘…]Ael(ius?)[…’). Altar found 1994 in Town Field during building work. Source: RIB III p.291

RIB 3294: Aurelius / M[… (‘Aurelius …’). Slab fragment found before 1964. Source: RIB III p.292

RIB 3295: a) …] […]R […] / […]O ❧ b) C (‘?’). Slab identified 1971 on a stone from the W granary. Source: RIB III p.292

Analysis

Corbridge is one of the few sites in the Hadrian’s Wall region where history and archaeology collide head-on. This is a product of its strategic location – at the junction of the Stanegate and Dere Street, just by a major Tyne crossing – and the intensive campaign of excavation that began in 1906 and continued, with interruptions, until 1980.

The religious dedications give us a good idea of just how cosmopolitan a place Corbridge was. The deities represented include Apollo Maponus (1120-2), Mercury (1123, 1133), Astarte (1124, in Greek), Diana (1126), Minerva (1134), Heracles of Tyre (1129, also in Greek), Jupiter (1130-1), Mars Ultor (1132), Panthea (1135), Silvanus (1136), Sol Invictus (1137), and Veteris (1139-41). More militarily derived deities include Concordia (1125), Discip(u)lina (1127-8), and Victoria (1136). Notable by their absence are Cocidius and Mithras. The presence of pairs of legionary detachments in the compounds south of the Stanegate is most poignantly indicated by that dedication to Concordia (‘harmony’) between the Sixth and Twentieth Legions, but it is difficult to interpret that in any other way than the most pessimistic and see it as indicative as extreme rivalry, if not outright conflict, between the two detachments.

The various building inscriptions tell us something of what was happening to Corbridge as it developed from a turf and timber fort with a small associated civil settlement into a town with a legionary enclave. The Second Legion Augusta are seen rebuilding the stone granaries in AD 139–40 (1147–8), whilst a building inscription of AD 163–6 (1137) includes a (deleted) dedication to Sol Invictus by a detachment of the Sixth Legion, building under Calpurnius Agricola, possibly the occasion when construction of Site 11 began. The same legion is mentioned in other inscriptions (1159-63) and we know the Twentieth Legion constructed the ornamental fountain (Site 8) next to the granaries (1164) and they are recorded elsewhere (1165–7). The Second Legion Augusta is represented by a dedication on a statue base (1127) and a relief (1154) depicting their vexillus (sic), as well as on various building stones (1155–8). Severus’ northern campaign is reflected in an inscription set up by a praepositus in charge of granaries during ‘the Most Fortunate British Expedition’ (1143) and the construction of a granary by a legionary detachment (1151). We may also note in passing a building stone (1186) from a cohort (possibly the First) of Lingones (the First were at High Rochester in the Antonine period and Lanchester in the 3rd century).

Finally, the tombstones reveal some of the inhabitants to us. From its days as a fort, the tombstone of Flavinus (1172) is a fine example of the Reiter type of relief, with a cavalryman of the ala Petriana riding down a cowering barbarian. The tombstone of Barathes, a standard bearer (vexillarius), often equated with the husband of Regina, recorded on a tombstone (RIB 1065) from South Shields. The stone of a lefionary of the Sixth Legion (1175) has heirs with distinctly eastern-sounding names, possibly reflecting a sojourn in the East during the Antonine period for that unit, perhaps also attested in the dedication to Sol Invictus (1137). The civil population is highlighted by three child tombstones from the site, one each of 6 (1182), 5 (1180), and 4 years old (1181), all little girls.