The Boudican Uprising and the Glass Vessels from Colchester
By Hilary E.M. Cool
Expedition, Vol.38:2 (1996)
Introduction: In AD 60 the town of Colchester, about 85 kilometers northeast of London, was burnt to the ground and its inhabitants slaughtered during a native revolt led by the Icenian queen Boudica. The remains of this town are now buried 2 to 3 meters below the modern town, and so are not normally accessible. Redevelopment of large parts of the historic town center over the past 25 years, however, has given the Colchester Archaeological Trust the opportunity to excavate the Roman town, including these mid-1st century levels.
The excavations have provided a treasure trove of information about how the early Roman settlers lived and the things they used. This article will focus on one small aspect of this material, namely the vessel glass. The glass fragments recovered during these excavations, and from earlier ones just outside of the town, are an invaluable resource for studying early Roman glass, not only in Britain but elsewhere in the Empire as well. To understand quite how useful they are, let us first place Colchester in its wider setting in the Empire, and then consider the state of the Roman glass industry at the time.
Click here to read this article from the Penn Museum
