New Distributed Titles Fall 2009 - Oxbow Books

itish archaeology
Excavations and Observations
in Roman Cirencester, 1998–2007
edited by Neil Holbrook
This volume presents the results of a number of excavations undertaken
in Cirencester in the last decade which have examined houses, shops,
public buildings (including the forum), town defenses and cemeteries.
Excavations within insula IX found a previously unrecorded corridor
mosaic, while work within the western cemetery has revealed interesting
evidence for early Roman cremation ritual, along with later Roman
inhumation burials. The publication of this volume marks the fiftieth
anniversary of the formation of the Cirencester Excavation Committee,
and an introductory essay charts the changing circumstances in which
archaeology has been practiced in the town over the last fifty years.
158p, paperback, 9780955353420, $30.00, Cotswold Archaeology,
December 2008, Cirencester Excavations VI.
Tracks through Time
Archaeology and History
from the East London Line Project
by Aaron Birchenough, George Dennis, Emma Dwyer,
Nicholas Elsden, Hana Lewis and Susan M Wright
The East London Line Project presented a unique opportunity, as
structures were demolished and cleared for London’s latest railway, to
discover more about some of London’s earliest railways. This included
previously undiscovered parts of one of the world’s first operational
passenger railways, the Eastern Counties of 1840. The new construction
led to important archaeological discoveries, particularly at the site of
Holywell Priory and beneath Bishopsgate Goods Yard in Shoreditch.
64p, col illus, paperback, 9781901992878, $19.95,
Museum of London Archaeological Service, July 2009.
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The Glass-Blowers of Roman London
by John Shepherd and Angela Wardle
Recycling may be a topical subject today, but it is an ancient practice.
Glass was regularly recycled to make new vessels during the
Roman period and important new evidence for glass working in
London came from 35 Basinghall Street in the City, with the discovery,
in 2005, of over 70 kg of broken vessel glass and production
waste. This ranges from large blocks, cooled in a tank furnace,
to minute threads swept from a workshop floor. Particularly impressive
are thousands of moils the small cylinder of glass left on
the end of the blowing iron when a vessel was detached, each
representing the making of a single product.
64p, col illus, paperback, 9781901992847, $13.95, Museum of London Archaeological Service, September 2009.
Housesteads Roman Fort –
The Grandest Station
Excavation and Survey, 1954–95
by Alan Rushworth
Housesteads is one of the most important forts on
Hadrian’s Wall. Extensive excavations were carried
out between 1874 and 1981 by Newcastle University.
Combining the results with those of excavations done
between 1959 and 1961 by Durham University, a
complete plan of the northeast part of the fort is now
available. This two-volume report documents the excavations
and gives full finds reports.
2 vols, 742p, 308, paperback, 9781848020269, $200.00(s), English Heritage, October 2009.
London’s Roman Amphitheatre
Guildhall Yard, City of London
by Nick Bateman, Carrie Cowan
and Robin Wroe-Brown
The discovery of one of Roman London’s most significant
buildings – its amphitheater – underneath the
medieval Guildhall resulted from major archaeological
excavations which took place between 1985 and 1999
as part of the City of London Corporations ambitious
program of redevelopment at the Guildhall. This book
describes the construction, development and disuse of
the amphitheater, from the 1st to 4th centuries AD. The evidence allows conjectural reconstruction
and comparison with other British amphitheaters.
259p, 176 col & b/w illus, 12 tbls, hardback, 9781901992717, $60.00,
Museum of London Archaeological Service, December 2008, MoLAS Monograph Series.
The David Brown Book Company – Fall 2009