Roman artefacts from the middle Walbrook valley (Hardback)

Excavations conducted during the construction of Bloomberg LP’s new European headquarters represent one of the largest archaeological investigations ever undertaken in the City of London. The site is situated in the middle Walbrook valley, close to the centre of Roman London, where waterlogged conditions have resulted in the excellent preservation of metalwork and the rare survival of organic materials such as wood and textiles. Initially wet marginal land, this area was rapidly and systematically transformed during the first century AD, made habitable through programmes of large scale landscaping that involved the dumping of large quantities of finds-rich waste. These artefacts form an invaluable archive of evidence for studying urban life in early Roman Britain.

This volume presents research into more than 10,000 of the Roman artefacts from the Bloomberg site including the glass vessels, small finds, coins and textiles. This material culture illustrates the diverse lifestyles and identities of early Londoners, including Roman soldiers, traders and craftspeople, from elites to the enslaved, and a range of different Roman and local cultural traditions. Finds such as dress accessories, military equipment, weighing tools, writing instruments, coins and imported goods reflect Londinium’s integration into imperial networks of governance and trade, the spread of new fashions, technologies and beliefs, and the development of the urban economy.