Relativism and the Frontiers of Empire

Anna Walas is a UKRI Future Leaders Fellow at the Institute of Classical Studies, University of London. She holds a PhD in Roman Archaeology from the University of Leicester and previously studied at the University of Cambridge and the Jagiellonian University. She is also a Visiting Researcher at the University of Leicester and an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Nottingham.Andrew Birley holds a PhD in Roman Archaeology from the University of Leicester and is the current Director of Excavation and the CEO of the Vindolanda Trust. He is the former Chair of the Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies Archaeological Committee and a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London and Scotland.

• Dedication Relativism and the Other in the Study of Rome’s Frontiers – Anna Walas and Andrew Birley Part 1: Roman Frontiers RepositionedThe Demise of Roman Frontier Studies? – David J. MattinglyFrontiers and the Roman Empire: A Comparative Perspective – Andrew GardnerFrom French Conquest to Algerian Independence: French Foreign Legion and the Roman Legionary Base at Lambaesis – Anna WalasThe Frontiers of the Concept: Are Romanization and Islamization Comparable? – José Cristóbal Carvajal LópezReflections on ‘Writing the Legions’: Roman Military Scholarship – Rebecca H. JonesVisualising Roman Military Bases in Cities: The Challenge of Rome’s Castra Nova – Ian Haynes Part 2: De-Colonial Approaches to Relations on Rome’s FrontiersSpeak Softly and Carry a Big Cross: Diplomacy, Evangelism and Ignorance on Justinian’s African Frontier – Andy MerrillsThe Malevolent Spirit of the Red Sea – Michel ReddéTorcs Transformed: A Fresh Look at Late Iron Age and Romano-British Beaded Torcs – Fraser HunterExpressions of Cultural Affiliation Reflecting the Dynamic Creation of Roman Auxiliary Communities – Elizabeth M. Greene Part 3: Relativist Deconstructions of Imperial CultureSculpture from Old Carlisle, Cumbria, and What It Tells Us about Life in the Hinterland of Hadrian’s Wall – Lindsay Allason-JonesSetting the Frame: Further Thoughts on the Suovetaurilia Scene on the Bridgeness Distance Slab – David J. Breeze, Christof Flügel and Erik P. GraafstalTracing the Life of a Dipinto: A Revision of the Iarhibol Dipinto from the Military Clerical Office in Dura-Europos – Lucinda DirvenEffluvia of Empire: Sanitation and the Roman Army – Simon Esmonde Cleary Part 4: Cultural Relativism and Belonging on the FrontiersThe Roman Military on the Syrian Euphrates: Small Finds in Roman Global Worlds – J. A. BairdThe Men of Dura-Europos: A Demographic Profile of the Cohors XX Palmyrenorum – Carol van Driel-MurrayCeramics and Social Practice on Roman Military Sites – Penelope AllisonFrontiers and Dehumanisation: Mobility, Materiality and Religious Activity in Frontier Zones – Adam Rogers Part 5: Relativism and Cultures of ViolenceWhich Side Does Sir Dress? – M. C. BishopDifferentiation and Conflict on the Northern Frontier – Alexander MeyerThe Enemy You Know: Evidence for Complex Relationships and Interpersonal Conflict on the Northern Frontier of Roman Britain – Andrew Birley Simon James, Bibliography