Hadrian’s Wall and its Trees

Contributor List:Susan AglionbyMarta Alberti-DunnLindsay Allason-JonesCatherine AyresAmy BakerRichard BelesonSarah BellGeoffrey BennettAndrew BirleyBarbara BirleyPatricia BirleyMike BishopSam BithellDavid J. BreezeRichard BrickstockCaroline CartwrightLaura CharltonAbigail CheverstMike CollinsNick CorbleEleri CousinsDorothy CowansJim CrowKelly DavisEckhard Deschler-ErbAndrew FoxPaul FrodshamTony GatesErik GraafstalBill GriffithsWilliam (Bill) S. HansonJane HarrisonTom HazenbergRichard HingleyMatthew HobsonNick HodgsonFraser HunterJacqui HuntleyTatiana IvlevaIan JacksonNick JohnsonRececca H. JonesPaul J. KitchingAl McCluskeyFrances McIntoshAlex MeyerRoger MiketKatie MountainRachel NewmanDon O’MearaAndrew PoadJohn S. PoulterCarole RaddatoMark RichardsTanja RomankiewiczRobert SandsPeter SavinSue StallibrassMartha Lovell StewartGraeme StobbsMatthew SymondsRoger TomlinHarry van EnckevortSandra WalkshoferDavid WalshHumphrey WelfareAlan WilkinsTony Wilmott

• PrefaceForeword – Tony GatesIntroduction – David J. Breeze and Mark RichardsMy Journey to a Tree – Richard Beleson Storm Arwen – Graeme StobbsUnder the Sycamore Tree – Jim CrowThe Romans and TreesTrees in Roman Literature – Andrew FoxA Mythology of Trees – Sandra Walkshofer The Caledonian Forest – Rebecca H. JonesHadrian and the Protection of Trees in Lebanon – Carole RaddatoA Coin Depicting a Tree – Richard BrickstockWoodlandThe First Northern Forest – Ian JacksonAn Ancient Grove – Ian JacksonWildwoods and Wildernesses – Sue StallibrassStrategy, Walls and Trees: Wark Forest from Highshield Crags – Al McCluskeyTrees and the Survey of Hadrian’s Wall – John PoulterThe Protection of TreesNorthumbria Veteran Trees Project – Nick JohnsonAncient Woodlands Along the Wall – Dorothy CowansWoodlands on Hadrian’s Wall: Managing the Resource – Don O’Meara and Mike CollinsTrees Along the WallDrawn to Trees – Mark B. RichardsA Tree at the Wall – Eckhard Deschler-ErbA Sentinel at Benwell – David J. BreezeA Lost Tree at Denton – David J. BreezeDown Hill – Sam BithellA Green Knoll at Chesters which Seemed to Invite Antiquarian Research – Frances McIntoshA Solitary Thorn Marks the Site of Turret 29b – Katie MountainThe Reverend Anthony Hedley’s Drive at Vindolanda – Peter SavinA Venerable Symbol of Immortality: The Beltingham Yew – Paul FrodshamA Lost Tree from the West Gate at Vindolanda – Alexander MeyerThe Vallum’s Tall Trees at Twice Brewed – Sarah BellWalltown – Abigail CheverstThe Walltown Country Park – Abigail CheverstMedieval Trees on Hadrian’s Wall – Rachel Newman and Tony WilmottTurf Love – Peter SavinA Scots Pine at High House – David J. BreezeA Pear Tree at Lanercost and the Romans’ Taste in Fruit – Jacqui HuntleyBlackthorn in Wall Mile 59 – Humphrey WelfareThe Tree Line in Houghton – Susan AglionbyOut West: A Tree at Port Carlisle – Jane HarrisonSycamores at Maryport – Kelly DavisObjects Created from TreesThe Contribution of Archaeological Science to Understanding Wood in Antiquity – Tony WilmottThe Conservation of the Wooden Objects at Vindolanda – Patricia BirleyThe Wood of the Vindolanda Writing Tablets – Caroline CartwrightTransport and CommunicationHadrian’s Road to Britain – Erik P. GraafstalWooden Wheels on the Walls – Fraser HunterWooden Walls: Hadrian’s Maritime Frontier – Paul KitchingBridging the North Sea – Tom HazenbergA Tree Provides Evidence of the Twentieth Legion at Carlisle – Roger S.O. TomlinA Friendship Forged at the Edge of Their World – Andrew BirleyBuildingBuilding in Timber on Hadrian’s Wall – William S. HansonThe Roman Army Cutting Down Trees on Trajan’s Column – Harry van EnckevortCutting the Frontier’s Timber – Alan WilkinsReduce, Reuse, Recycle – Tanja RomankiewiczObstacles on the Berm – Nicholas HodgsonThe Great Chesters pilum murale – Martha Lovell StewartAn Unexpected Inscription – Matthew SymondsBehind the Closed Door – David J. BreezeLiving and DyingA Roman Travel Sewing Kit – Barbara BirleyA Tale of Two Turners: Trees, Places and Lived Experiences – Rob SandsThe Carlisle Wooden Sword – Mike BishopPizza for Dinner, Anyone? – Jacqui HuntleyThe Wooden Underworld: Toilet Seats – Marta Alberti-DunnCremation Practices at Luguvalium/Carlisle – Matthew S. HobsonUnknown Wood(s): Roman-period Wooden Jewellery – Tatiana IvlevaUnknown Objects: Wood Woven into the Fabric of the Frontier – Amy BakerReligionSculptured Trees from the Military Zone – Lindsay Allason-JonesA God in the Woods: Cocidius at Risingham – Eleri CousinsA Foreign Tree for a Foreign Cult: Pinecones in the Carrawburgh Mithraeum – David WalshThe Goddess Coventina and her Sacred Grove at Brocolitia/Carrawburgh – Richard HingleyTrees and ArtistsArtists and Trees on Hadrian’s Wall – David J. BreezeTwo Puzzles at Blackcarts – David J. BreezeA Presbyterian Minister’s Wooden ‘Reliquary’? – Roger MiketThe Book Plate of John Collingwood Bruce – David J. BreezeThe Carved Wooden Soldier at Segedunum/Wallsend – Bill GriffithsThe Sycamore Gap Tree: Its Future Trees of Hope – Andrew PoadNotes Made on Hadrian’s Wall – Catherine AyresDendrochronological analysis of the tree in Sycamore Gap – Historic England Press NoticeEpilogue – Geoffrey Bennett Further ReadingAcknowledgements and CreditsList of Contributors

'Bringing the story full circle, the felling of the Sycamore Gap tree also features in Hadrian's Wall and Its Trees with a report on the trial of the two men who were found guilty of the act, and an overview of dendrochronological work carried out on the tree by the Digital Humanities Lab at Exeter University. In case you were asking, it was 100-120 years old (CA 428), but the story of trees on Rome's northern frontier stretches back across almost two millennia.' – Current Archaeology (2025): Issue 431