Roman soldiers’ very rude graffiti found on stones bound for Hadrian’s Wall
Among the inscriptions was a phallus sketched by a trooper to bring good luck
RUDE graffiti carved into a Hadrian's Wall quarry has been unearthed 1,800 years after first being scrawled.
The ancient art found in Cumbria includes a drawing of willy as well as a caricature of a commanding officer.
Hadrian's Wall is one of Britain's most important archaeological landmarks, representing the northern frontier of the Roman empire.
The inscriptions were found at the Gelt Woods quarry which supplied stones for repair work on the wall.
Four new inscriptions have been uncovered including "a relief sculpture of a phallus" – which was a Roman good luck symbol.
Another image carved into the quarry is believed to be a caricature of the commanding officer in charge of the quarrying process.
There's also a datable inscription that reads "APRO ET MAXIMO CONSVLIBS OFICINA MERCATI".
This refers to the consulate of Aper and Maximus, and is proof of rebuilding and repair work to the Roman frontier in the early third century AD.
The inscription is dated to 207AD and marks a period where Hadrian's Wall was repaired.
Markings were first discovered at the site in the 18th Century, but have "suffered" in recent years as the soft sandstone erodes.
Archaeologists at Newcastle University are now scrambling to record all of the inscriptions before "they are lost for ever".
"These inscriptions are very vulnerable to further gradual decay," said Ian Haynes, Professor of Archaeology at Newcastle University.
";This is a great opportunity to record them as they are in 2019, using the best modern technology to safeguard the ability to study them into the future."
Archaeologists will work with rock-climbing specialists to record the markings, using ropes and pulleys to access the graffiti.
They'll drop 30ft down the quarry face and then use structure-from-motion photogrammetry to create a 3D record of the writings.
Hadrian's Wall explained
Here's what you need to know...
- Hadrian's Wall was a major defensive fortification build under Roman emperor Hadrian during Rome's occupation of Britannia
- Construction of the wall began in AD122, running from the banks of the River Tyne to the Solway Firth
- The wall was considered to be the northern limit of the Roman Empire
- Areas beyond the wall were occupied by northern Ancient Britons, which included the Picts
- Roman builders constructed the stone wall with a stone base, intersected with milecastles with two turrets in between
- The Romans also built a fort into the wall every five miles, to help defend the border
- The milecastles are believed to have been occupied by small garrisons, whereas infantry and cavalry staffed the forts
- Large areas of the wall still remain today, and run roughly 73 miles across the north of England
- It's officially designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is the largest Roman archaeological feature anywhere in the world
Tourists were previously able to visit some of the inscriptions at the site but the collapse of a path in the 1980s meant this was no longer possible.
The recording project, which is funded by Historic England, gives the public the opportunity to see the inscriptions again – in 3D digital form.
"These inscriptions at Gelt Forest are probably the most important on the Hadrian's Wall frontier," said Mike Collins, Inspector of Ancient Monuments for Hadrian's Wall at Historic England.
"They provide insight into the organisation of the vast construction project that Hadrian's Wall was, as well as some very human and personal touches, such as the caricature of their commanding officer inscribed by one group of soldiers."
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