J Roman Archaeol 18 (1)

The author aims to demonstrate that the Roman face-mask helmet was used in a public spectacle whose aims and visual language had close ties with other genres of Roman triumphal art, and that, while some aspects of face-helmets remain enigmatic, they embody themes of violence, identity and gender which speak to powerful cultural concerns of both Romans and their modern interpreters. Following a look at the definitions and history of face-mask helmets, the paper considers Arrian's account, written in AD 136, of the equestrian spectacle known as the hippika gymnasia, evidence for the origins and production of face-mask helmets, and their typology (including helmets depicting women) before discussing the probable form of the hippika spectacle and the role played by the face-mask helmet.

Paper exploring some of the approaches to material culture developed by archaeologists studying slavery in the `New World' and arguing that similar strategies may help in understanding the lives of slaves and other servile groups in the Roman world. Taking Roman Britain as a starting point, the author develops a case-study on slave-quarters (accommodations) that moves from the plantations of the southeastern USA to prisons (ergastula) and roundhouses in Roman Britain.

The author recounts the discovery of remains of a monumental stone circus to the south of the walled part of the Roman town of Colonia Victricensis (Colchester), and describes the probable appearance and history of the structure, including the available dating evidence.

Paper presenting a discussion on ten inscribed stones from widely separated locations in the Roman Empire, including one from Vercovicium (Housesteads) on Hadrian's Wall, containing related, though not identical, texts. Most of the inscriptions appear to be on blocks or plaques intended to be displayed, and only the one from Vercovicium mentions a dedicator. The author examines previous interpretations of the significance of these inscriptions, and proposes that they relate to an oracle issued by Apollo of Claros in or after AD 165 in response to the Antonine Plague.

Paper presenting a methodology for using significance tests developed during post-excavation analysis of a third-century AD cemetery at Brougham, Cumbria, to establish patterns in archaeological data. Examples are drawn from research by E Swift on the association of amber beads with children's burials from within the Roman Empire (in J Roman Archaeol 16 (1) (2003), pages 336--49), and from the results of the Brougham post-excavation analysis. The nature of the tests and their appropriate use are considered, and to demonstrate how the methodology works, two further examples of their application are given, drawn from a large rural Romano-British settlement site at Claydon Pike, Gloucestershire, and from the analysis of skeletal remains from the fourth-century AD cemetery at Poundbury, Dorset. It is argued that significance tests can be a useful archaeological tool in establishing data patterns that are unlikely to have come about by chance; these patterns can then be evaluated in relation to the wider archaeological context. Includes

Response to ` ``Vanishing villas'': what happened to élite rural habitation in the West in the 5th--6th c.?' by T Lewit in J Roman Archaeol 16 (1) (2003), pages 260--74.