ROMANO-BRITISH LONDON through periods of varying fortune and experienced a time of far reachino- change, suffering from the effects of fire and flood. As to the causes by which the altered conditions were brought about, history is silent, and it remains for the present unexplained. At a later time prosperity again came to the inhabitants ; portions of it that had lain waste and swampy were reclaimed, and over the black mud which buried the ruins of the earlier City buildings were raised showing signs of taste and luxury. Further proof of the refinement and wealth possessed by the inhabitants of the Romanized City is to be found in the numberless objects of art and industry which have for centuries been dug up, some of which survive in museums and others in private hands, though many have been scattered and lost. Few of these objects have much archaeological value owing to the condition of their discovery not having been recorded, but they at least serve to show what opportunities have been missed of gaining knowledge of the ancient and mysterious cities beneath our feet, through the apathy and indifference with which such matters have mostly been regarded. Future observation and research may remove much of the obscurity that now enshrouds such discoveries as have been recorded, but most of the Roman level has unfortunately been destroyed, while that which survives is rapidly giving way before the ceaseless activity of ' modern improvements.' Note on Roman Pottery found in London In order to avoid unnecessary explanations in the course of the following pages, it may be advantageous to add here a few words on the character of the Roman pottery, of which such great quantities have been found in London. Of these finds a large proportion is now in the National collection, including the extensive and representative series of specimens amassed by Charles Roach Smith (1^35-56), and a smaller but yet valuable collection made by E. B. Price previous to 1853. There is also a good series in the Guildhall, which is still being added to from time to time. The scientific study of Roman pottery, for many years neglected, has at last been receiving serious attention on the Continent, and yet more recently in England. A catalogue of the British Museum collection is now in course of compilation, and is expected to appear in 1908 ; in view of this it has not been thought necessary to enter into much detail in the present case, or to attempt to give more than a summary of the potters' stamps. These will be fully dealt with in the forthcoming work ; most of those in the Guildhall are given in the published catalogue of that collection, and isolated finds have not been published in sufficient detail to admit of the compilation of an exhaustive list of potters' stamps found in London. I therefore content myself with a brief summary of what recent research has done for the classification and chronology of Roman pottery, more particularly the red-glazed wares formerly known as ' Samian,' but now generally recognized as having been manufactured in Central Gaul, whence they were exported in enormous quantities to Britain. The manufacture of this kind of pottery extends over more than two centuries : from the reign of Tiberius (about a.d. 30-40) down to that of Gallienus (about a.d. 250-60), but the ornamented red ware apparently ceased to be made (at least in Gaul) about the time of Marcus Aurelius (a.d. 161-80). From the point of view of technique it falls into three classes: (i) ornamented vases with patterns or figures, made in the mould ; (2) plain vases with or without potters' stamps ; (3) vases with decoration in thick slip or barbotine. The principal centres of fabric were {a) Conda- tomagus in the Rutenian territory, now La Graufesenque (Dept. of Aveyron) ; (b) Ledosus in the Arvernian territory, now Lezoux (Dept. of Puy-de-D6me) ; (c) Tabernae Rhenanae on the Rhine, now Rheinzabern (near Speyer). The periods of activity of these three centres were, so far as can be ascertained : [a] about a.d. 40-100 ; {h) a.d. 70-250 ; (f) a.d. 100-250. An important consideration in dealing with the pottery is that of the forms employed, certain shapes being used for each class at different periods. These shapes were collected and classified in a rough chronological order by Dr. DragendorfF in an important article in the Bonner yahrbucher for 1895, and the numbers then assigned to them have been adopted for convenience by all succeeding writers. His labours have been effectively supplemented by M. Dichelette in his invaluable Vases 83
