Exploring Roman Britain

Synopsis

Uses the collections of the Verulamium Museum and the reconstructions of Alan Sorrell to recreate Roman town life. It is produced as a series of three shorter programmes: HOW THE TOWN GREW, LIVING IN THE TOWN and WIDER HORIZONS.

Language

English

Country

Great Britain

Year of production

1981

Uses

Students of Roman archaeology and those interested in the origins and nature of early towns.

Subjects

Archaeology; History

Keywords

towns; Roman Britain

Online availability

URI

http://jiscmediahub.ac.uk/

Price

academic subscription

Delivery

Download

Distribution Formats

Type

DVD

Format

Region 2 PAL

Price

£20.00

Availability

Sale

Duration/Size

39 minutes

Year

2014

Sections

Title

How the town grew

Synopsis

The Iron Age origins of the town of Verulamium are traced from the oppidum of King Tasciovanus up to the Roman invasion by Claudius in AD 43. A Roman garrison fort encouraged continued civilian settlement and a prosperous town was developing, but Boudicca’s rebels burned it to the ground in AD 60. Recovery was slow, but by AD 75, the town was growing fast, and a town hall and market square were followed by a market hall, temples, and theatre.

Duration

12 mins

Title

Living in the town

Synopsis

Life in the Roman town is compared to life in its 20th century successor, St Albans, and found to be remarkably similar. Its high street was lined with the shops of butchers, bakers, greengrocers, jewellers, cobblers, drapers, and hardware merchants, as well as fast-food restaurants and bars. There were temples of different religions and a regular market. Its entrepreneurial citizens lived in towns with central heating and elaborate bathrooms, and could call on the services of chemists, doctors, opticians and surgeons.

Duration

14 mins

Title

Wider horizons

Synopsis

Although the town grew some of its own food, it relied on the many villa estates in the surrounding countryside for the bulk of its supply. Farmers selling food in the town could buy imported goods here from much of the western Roman empire. They also flocked to town to share in the entertainments provided by the public baths, the theatre and the amphitheatre. In the late fourth century, long-distance trade collapsed and so too did confidence in the security of the countryside. The town fell into decline but ‘town life’ dragged on for perhaps a century or more after the Romans left, soon after 400 AD.

Duration

13 mins

Sponsor

Name

University of Sheffield, Department of Archaeology and Prehistory

Distributor

Name

JISC MediaHub

Notes

NB. As of 1 September 2016, the Jisc MediaHub subscription service is no longer available. However, all the multimedia content that Jisc has licensed for use by higher and further education institutions, which is currently accessed via the MediaHub subscription, is available through a new service, MediaPlus, at http://mediaplus.alexanderstreet.com.

Name

University of Sheffield Learning & Teaching Services

Web

http://onlineshop.shef.ac.uk/browse/category.asp?compid=1&modid=1&catid=114 External site opens in new window

Phone

0114 22 20401

Address

New Spring House (Ground Floor)
231 Glossop Road
Sheffield
S10 2GW
United Kingdom

Notes

LeTS holds a back catalogue of high quality educational video programmes it has produced, all of which are available in DVD format. The 100+ titles cover most academic subject areas and contain valuable sequences in the form of animations and demonstrations. The DVDs are available to purchse from the university’s online store.