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QUESTIONS CONCERNING THE RESIDUALITY OF BROOCHES AND COINS IN ROMANO‐BRITISH CONTEXTS
Author(s) -
Matthews Boehmer Thomas
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
oxford journal of archaeology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.382
H-Index - 31
eISSN - 1468-0092
pISSN - 0262-5253
DOI - 10.1111/ojoa.12205
Subject(s) - archaeology , chronology , history , archaeological record , period (music) , archaeological evidence , art , aesthetics
Summary Archaeologists often use Roman‐period brooches and coins in the important task of dating features and phases on sites. Whilst this use of artefacts has had undeniable benefits in terms of establishing their chronology, this is itself dependent upon the reliability of the date that can be ascribed to the brooch or coin. However, questions remain as to the reliability of the evidence relating to a significant aspect of these objects’ dating. Here I point to a discrepancy in the dating of first‐ and second‐centuries CE artefacts in the archaeological record in Britain. Acknowledging the important work undertaken by other scholars in the field, the article describes the frequent inconsistency that nonetheless exists between the defined dates of the manufacture of brooches and coins and the date of their physical archaeological contexts on smaller‐scale sites. It goes on to offer some thoughts regarding dating for future consideration.