Published:30/04/2026Language:EnglishPages:252, Illustrated throughout in black & white and colour.BAR Number: B704Series: BAR British Series

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Communities, Connectivity and Complexity in Roman Britain

Name: Communities, Connectivity and Complexity in Roman Britain
SKU: Communities, Connectivity and Complexity in Roman Britain
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New archaeological agendas

Edited by Martin Pitts, Penny Coombe, Eleri Cousins, Andrew Gardner, and Lisa Lodwick†

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Description

This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC 4.0 License. It is free to read, download and share on the BAR Digital platform.

This volume kick-starts debate on the future of archaeological research on Roman Britain. Focusing on new approaches to socio-economic, cultural, power and material dynamics, it addresses pressing issues facing the field. Since the deconstruction of ‘Romanisation’, a lack of consensus has seen the fragmentation of approaches, theories, methodologies and archaeological specialisms. Contributors propose innovative ways forward that collectively embrace the themes of communities, connectivity, and complexity. ‘Communities’ concerns both professional communities in field archaeology, museums, heritage, and universities and emphasises approaches that address the diverse patchwork of ancient communities that inhabited Britannia. ‘Connectivity’ challenges the perceived parochialism of Romano-British studies, advocating the connection of research communities and the integration of Romano-British data with those from the rest of the Roman world. ‘Complexity’ underlines the generation of specialised knowledge and increasingly complex datasets, and the challenges of producing new, methodologically and theoretically innovative, historical narratives for specialist and public audiences.

About the Editor

Martin Pitts is Professor of Roman Archaeology at the University of Exeter. His research focuses on consumption and cultural dynamics in the Roman northwest provinces.

Eleri Cousins is Assistant Professor in Roman Archaeology at Durham University. Her research focuses on society and culture in Roman Britain and the northwest provinces.

Andrew Gardner is Professor of the Archaeology of the Roman Empire at UCL. His research interests include comparative frontier studies and archaeological theory.

Penny Coombe is Kelekian Curatorial Fellow in Ancient Art at Harvard Art Museums. Her research concentrates on Roman art in Britain and comparative cultural interactions in the northwest provinces.

List of Contributors: Oscar Aldred, Rob Collins, Penny Coombe, Eleri Cousins, Glynn J. C. Davis, Hella Eckardt, Christopher Evans, Robin Fleming, Catherine J. Frieman, Andrew Gardner, Owen Humphreys, Antony Lee, Lisa Lodwick, Katherine McDonald, Frances McIntosh, Gundula Müldner, Béline Pasquini, Martin Pitts, Rubina Raja, Rebecca Redfern, Adam Sutton, Peter Van Dommelen, Astrid Van Oyen.

Reviews

‘This book engages creatively with the challenges set by the editors, giving content that’s more reflective, better contextualised and with a longer shelf life than the research agenda documents which come and go. Anyone who works on Roman Britain across the different communities highlighted by the editors (museums, contractors and universities) should read it.’ Dr John Pearce, King’s College London

‘This collection of papers addresses a significant range of issues which apply to many areas of current work in the archaeology of Roman Britain. [T]his will be required reading for the next generation of archaeologists and academics.’ Dr Natasha Harlow, University of Nottingham