The Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures of the University of Chicago possesses a papyrus with the inventory number E8349, which contains the only surviving copy of Hadrian's lost autobiography. Written toward the close of his life, Hadrian's autobiography appears to have taken the form of a series of letters to Antoninus Pius. Its… Continue reading The only known copy of Hadrian’s lost autobiography in the Chicago Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures
A new slab of the Fasti Ostienses, an ancient Roman marble calendar (extant in fragmentary form) recording imperial news, magistrates and events related to the city of Ostia, the harbour city of ancient Rome, emerged during the second excavation campaign at the Forum of Porta Marina in Ostia Antica, as part of the Ostia Post… Continue reading A new fragment of the Fasti Ostienses dated to AD 128 found at Ostia Antica
Another fortnight of digging at Vindolanda ended earlier this month. It was my second season of excavations there, and I enjoyed it as much as I did the first time last year (read here). As I was alone this time, I booked the Excavate & Stay two-week placement and stayed at the Hedley Centre located near… Continue reading Digging at Vindolanda (2023)
After spending the winter of AD 122/3 in Tarraco (see here), Hadrian left Spain and set sail for Antioch and the Euphrates frontier, probably reaching his destination in June 123. According to a drastically abbreviated passage in the Historia Augusta, the Emperor aimed to meet the Parthian king (or receive Parthian envoys), indicating a renewal of hostilities between… Continue reading June AD 123 – Hadrian returns to the East and inspects the frontiers of northern Syria and Cappadocia (#Hadrian1900)
Happy 1947th birthday, Hadrian! I made some Cato’s Globi (Pastry Balls) as Hadrian’s birthday cake this year. Globi (original recipe from LacusCurtius): Mix the cheese and spelt in the same way (as Libum), sufficient to make the number desired. Pour lard into a hot copper vessel, and fry one or two at a time, turning them frequently with… Continue reading Felicem diem natalem, Hadriane! 🎂
Having returned to Gaul from Britain (see here), Hadrian made his only known visit to his native land as emperor during the winter of AD 122/3. He took up his residence at Tarraco (Tarragona), Rome's oldest foundation on the Iberian Peninsula and the capital of Hispania Tarraconensis. Anthony Birley has proposed the identification of some… Continue reading Winter AD 122/3 – Hadrian stays in Tarraco and rebuilds the Temple of Augustus (#Hadrian1900)
Towards the end of AD 122, Hadrian left Britain and set sail for Gaul, travelling southward to Nemausus (Nîmes) in Narbonensis before crossing the Pyrenees to Spain. His route would have certainly been along the via Agrippa from Bononia (Boulogne) on the North Sea to Lugdunum (Lyon), down the Rhone valley, and then along the… Continue reading Autumn AD 122 – Hadrian returns to Gaul and commemorates his horse and Plotina (#Hadrian1900)
This summer, in the year we celebrate the 1900th anniversary of Hadrian's Wall, I participated in the excavations at Vindolanda, the famous frontier fort and settlement in Northern England at the edge of the Roman Empire. Vindolanda is a fascinating excavation site, one of the most productive in the world. Every year, between April and… Continue reading Digging at Vindolanda (2022)
After a lengthy inspection tour on the Rhine and Danube frontiers, Hadrian arrived in Britannia in the summer of 122 with his friend Aulus Platorius Nepos, the man chosen to be the new governor of the province. Nepos' previous posting had been to Germania Inferior, where Hadrian had just spent the last couple of weeks… Continue reading Summer AD 122 – Hadrian inspects the northern frontiers: part 5 Britannia (#Hadrian1900)
In 122, perhaps in late spring, Hadrian returned from the Danube to the Rhine. The last stage of his journey along the German frontier before moving to Britannia would have taken him down the Rhine to Colonia Agrippinensis (modern Cologne), the Hadrianic capital of Germania Inferior. One of his most trusted friends, Platorius Nepos, who… Continue reading Spring AD 122 – Hadrian inspects the northern frontiers: part 4 Germania Inferior (#Hadrian1900)
