1) A Roman centurion and a Roman auxiliary cavalryman who both lived at a remarkable intersection in history; taking part in the Roman invasion of Britannia in 43 AD, they fought and died in the conquest of a wild and mysterious land at the edge of their world..
2) Marcus Favonius Facilis was a centurion (commanding a unit of around 80 men) in the Twentieth Legion, who came to Britain as part of Claudius’ initial invasion force. He died a few years after the invasion while still in service, but we are not told his age or cause or death..
3) In a wonderfully preserved depiction, Marcus is shown in his centurion's uniform, wearing a cuirass and ornate belt over the leather 'pteruges' kilt worn by officers. In his right hand he holds his centurion’s stick (vitis), and in his left he holds the pommel of his gladius..
4) In a rare additional survival, when Marcus' toppled gravestone was excavated in 1868 his remains were found preserved underneath - a lead burial urn still holding his cremated bones and ashes after almost 2000 years..
5) As well as his cremation urn, a simple but elegant glass flask was deposited in Marcus' grave alongside a black eggshell-ware cup made in Italy, both recovered perfectly intact from the burial..
6) Alongside the gravestone of Marcus stands the memorial to Longinus Sdapeze, a Thracian cavalryman from modern day Bulgaria, who died at the age of 40 after 15 years' service in the Roman army..
7) Under a winged sphinx, flanked by lions, Longinus is shown on horseback in scale-armour, dramatically riding down a cowering, naked Briton. He would have originally held a spear, ready to strike the barbarian below..
8) While the gravestones offer some of the first sculptural depictions of Romans in Britain, here we also have one of the earliest depictions of a native Briton; shown naked with wild beard and spiked hair, largely matching descriptions in ancient sources..
9) In an exquisite irony, the excellent preservation of both gravestones suggests they were intentionally toppled soon after being set up - most likely by the rampaging forces of Boudica, who destroyed Roman Camulodunum in 60 AD..
10) One final delightful detail: the forces of Boudica also appear to have hacked off the head of Longinus, which was missing when the gravestone was unearthed in 1928 ...Though when the find-spot was further explored in 1996, the head was found and reunited with the cavalryman!
The gravestones of Marcus Favonius Facilis and Longinus Sdapeze are on display at Colchester Castle Museum.

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Gareth Harney

Gareth Harney Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @OptimoPrincipi

5 Jun
1) For many in the ancient world, life was a daily battle against hardship and hunger. Grinding poverty might even force people to give away their children, however much they loved them, as we see in this gut-wrenching document of relinquishment....
2) "Declaration by Aurelia Herais: my husband died and I was left by him to toil and suffer for my daughter, to provide her with the barest necessities in life. And now I no longer have the means to feed her. She is about nine years old...
3) ..I have therefore requested that you receive her from me as your daughter, so you may provide her with life's necessities and fill the position of parents to her. And I acknowledge that I have no power henceforth to reclaim her from you..
Read 4 tweets
4 Jun
1) The delightful Colchester Roman Circus mosaic, a modern mosaic designed by archaeological artist Peter Froste, taking inspiration from a famous chariot racing mosaic in Lyon. The mosaic shows the excitement of a race at Colchester's ancient circus which was discovered in 2005.
2) Chariot racing was extremely dangerous and the life expectancy of a charioteer was short. Here one of the racers crashes out with a broken wheel - such crashes were called 'naufragia' (shipwrecks) by the fanatical crowds, crying out "naufragium!" at the sight of an accident.
3) On the central barrier (spina) of the circus we can see the seven laps of the race being counted with large sculpted eggs; circus spinae were ornamented with water features, columns and sculptures, here Cybele, the Great Mother of the gods, is mounted on a lion.
Read 8 tweets
3 Jun
1) The Colchester Mercury - probably the finest ancient bronze statue to have survived from Roman Britain. The statue was unearthed by a ploughman in December 1947, near a known Roman temple just southwest of Colchester (Roman Camulodunum) Image
2) The discovery of the remarkable statue suggests the Roman temple, which now lies in Gosbecks Archaeological Park, may have been dedicated to Mercury - god of travellers and merchants. The temple stood beside the road from Camulodunum to Londinium.. Image
3) ..supporting a dedication to Mercury; both towns were hugely important in the administration of Britannia and trade with the wider empire. Here Romans would have made offerings of thanks or requests for safe travel as they departed or arrived at the ancient city. Image
Read 5 tweets
29 May
1) A pilgrimage to Flatford Mill in Suffolk, where John Constable (1776-1837) painted some of his most famous landscapes. Here some of his paintings with the corresponding view today, first up: “Boat-Building near Flatford Mill” (1815)
2) “Flatford Mill on the River Stour” (1817)
3) “The Lock” (1824)
Read 6 tweets
22 May
1) A tale of 11th century 'archaeology' that comes with a health warning for all lovers of history:

"In the days of Abbot Eadmar, excavators were digging foundations for the abbey church when they came across the remains of a huge palace in the centre of the ancient town...
2) Astonished at its scale, they explored further and discovered a recess resembling a cupboard in a wall, filled with a selection of unknown books and scrolls. They had all been scarcely affected by the passage of time..
3) The writing and the words were too old to be comprehensible but they were beautiful and written clearly with initials and headings in gold. The books had boards of oak, and silk ties, which had kept their original strength and beauty...
Read 6 tweets
15 May
1) Let's take a Roman road trip with Horace and Virgil. In 37 BC the two famous poets accompanied their patron Maecenas (friend and advisor to Octavian) on an eventful journey across Italy. Maecenas was travelling to Athens delivering a message from Octavian to Mark Antony and..
2)..his poet friends would go with him as far as Brundisium (modern Brindisi). Instead of focusing on the weight of the diplomatic mission, Horace's description of the 600 km trip is filled with small details and comical anecdotes, a remarkable travelogue of friends on the road..
3) "I set out on my journey and left behind the bustling city of Rome. At the little town of Aricia (16 miles from Rome) I stopped at a small inn. My travelling companion was Heliodorus the rhetor, most learned of the Greeks. From Aricia we went to Forum Appii (27 miles)..
Read 20 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal Become our Patreon

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!

:(