It is fortuitous that these two books are published at the same time, for each offers an account of the post-Roman history of their respective frontiers. Both are written by archaeologists eminently qualified for the task, and both are well written and copiously illustrated.
Hadrian's Wall has been in existence for nearly 2,000 years. The story of its use, re-use and abuse is thus complicated. Hingley offers a clear and accessible account of its history through these two millennia. In this well-structured book, his approach is to present the evidence in a series of essays, each focusing on a period, a person or an interpretation, though generally all are intertwined, from Hadrian himself to the present day. These include Gildas and Bede, Camden and his contemporaries, Horsley, Gordon and Warburton, Bruce and Clayton, Forster and Kipling, Haverfield, Collingwood, Birley and Richmond. During the journey we are introduced to many who have featured little in other accounts of the Wall. Throughout, the discussion of each period is placed within its wider contemporary English/Scottish, British imperial, and increasingly international background in the manner we have come to expect from the author. The narrative thus embraces subjects that we might not expect to be here, such as the influence of the literary and archaeological sources on painting and poetry and vice versa, issues of authenticity and presentation, and the problems of the National Trail. A subtle twist is to divide the book into parts based on its name: Vallum Aelium, the Picts' Wall, the Roman Wall, Hadrian's Wall and the ‘Inclusive Wall’, a treatment also enshrined in the useful timeline.
In two chapters the story of Hadrian's Wall is brought up-to-date. H. considers the issues relating to the authenticity of reconstructions, acknowledging that the form taken by any reconstruction of the Wall relates directly to interpretations of its function, while the reconstruction itself will only represent the best evidence available at the time; the next generation will prove it wrong, at least in part. Tourism now has a greater impact on the Wall than at any time in the past. In this context, H. discusses the way that the Wall has been used in Wallsend to remake the town following its de-industrialisation. Finally we come to an account of the creation of the National Trail along the Wall and the internationalisation of the frontier. H. notes the value of the Trail in underlining the unity of the Wall which, as it is 130 km long and differentially preserved, is difficult for most visitors to envisage as one monument. This leads naturally to the question of ‘who owns Hadrian's Wall?’. The answer is, ‘all of us’. In these circumstances, it is important to note that H. emphasises the need for archaeologists to be involved in issues relating to protection and presentation, for if the Wall is not appropriately preserved archaeologists will have nothing to study.
H.'s judgements are always carefully considered. My favourites relate to the way in which earlier ideas cling on long after they have been disproved, for example, those of Gildas which influenced the painter William Bell Scott in the 1850s (170), and how difficult it is to dislodge them (336). It is difficult to find anything to criticise in this book and slips are few, though it should be noted that Burne-Jones was married to Kipling's mother's sister, not his sister (214).
The text is supported by contemporary illustrations, many not generally known, and by a useful series of maps locating the sites discussed in each chapter and other drawings specially prepared by C. Unwin. All the illustrations are black-and-white. This aids the flow because the reader does not have to turn to a centre-fold, but there is a downside for wonderful colour paintings are reproduced in monochrome; these include Bobby Shafto's drawing of Benwell bath-house of about 1751 and Scott's painting Building of the Roman Wall created for Wallington Hall in 1857.
H. has written the historiographical account of Hadrian's Wall for this generation and, I suspect, beyond: it is one of the most important books ever to have been written on Hadrian's Wall. For this we owe him our thanks. There are two further thanks due. First, to the Arts and Humanities Research Council for funding this project: the money has been well spent. Second, to OUP for producing a book which is as satisfying to hold in the hand as it is to read.
Keppie has worked on the Antonine Wall for over 40 years as an excavator, museum curator, interpreter and writer. No one is better placed to tackle the subject of his new book, ‘a history of the Antonine Wall from the moment the Roman army abandoned it in the later 2nd century AD down to the early years of the 20th century’, the cut-off date being 1911, the year Macdonald published the first edition of his The Roman Wall in Scotland. K.'s account is published in the sumptuous style which we have come to expect from the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland which deserves our congratulations.
The first chapter offers an introduction to the Antonine Wall, an overview of the antiquarians, a consideration of the Wall in its landscape and historical setting, and a review of the place-names both ancient and modern. There follows one chapter on the period from the abandonment of the Wall through to the Renaissance, with each of the remaining chapters roughly covering a century. Repeatedly, the records of these antiquarians provide valuable information on the state of the Wall and its associated monuments, as well as the countryside in which they sat, at the time of their visits, illustrated by their drawings and paintings, in particular those of the Rev. John Skinner who walked the Wall in 1825. Rather than simply quote from their published monographs, as has been the norm in the past, K. has gone back to their correspondence and papers to give greater insight into their observations and methods of working.
K. gives due attention to the heroes of the story, though I suspect few are known to readers south of the Border. These include Timothy Pont who mapped Scotland towards the close of the sixteenth century. On the relevant map is marked the line of the Antonine Wall together with the names of many of the places along it still recognisable today. Pont also prepared a detailed drawing of the various elements of the frontier which was not believed for centuries until modern excavations have rendered it plausible. It is remarkable what was recorded at this early date. Sir William Brereton in the account of his visit in 1636 states that ‘at every mile's end there was erected a tower for the watchmen, and a castle at every two miles’ end', a perfect description of the fortlets and forts on the Wall, while George Buchanan in 1582 had already noted the existence of the forts and also Arthur's O'on.
Another hero is William Dunlop, Principal of Glasgow College from 1690 to 1700, who began the internationally important collection of inscriptions and sculpture relating primarily to the Antonine Wall, now housed in the Hunterian Museum in the University of Glasgow. In this way he ensured the survival of so many stones which previously had been subject to the vagaries of the interests of the local landowners. One of these inscriptions was that first seen at Balmuildy in 1696–8. It records the name of Lollius Urbicus and was described as ‘The most invaluable Jewel of Antiquity that ever was found in the Island of Britain’ for it proved the location of the frontier built by Antoninus Pius (RIB 2191).
In the early eighteenth century, both Walls were well served by the same observers, Alexander Gordon and John Horsley, but following the Jacobite Uprising of 1745/6 their paths separated again. While the Uprising resulted in the destruction of part of Hadrian's Wall, it led to the detailed recording of the Antonine Wall by William Roy and the planning of other Roman sites in Scotland by him and by Robert Melville, the man credited with first recognising Roman temporary camps in the field, who walked the Wall in 1754. At the same time, land changed hands as a result of local families being on the wrong side and some of the incomers were industrialists. The Antonine Wall was to suffer severely over the next 200 years owing to its location in central Scotland and this underlines the importance of the antiquarian records.
The industrialisation of central Scotland eventually led to a series of important rescue excavations, and these, together with contemporary research excavations, form the penultimate section of K.'s book. An epilogue carries the story forward to the ascription of the Antonine Wall as a World Heritage Site in 2008.
K.'s account of the antiquaries and the Antonine Wall is in what one might term a traditional manner. H., on the other hand, is keen to relate his account to a wider world. Both need to be on the shelf of all interested in Roman Britain and in Roman frontiers. Both are essential reading for those who want to understand the origin of today's theories about these complex monuments as well as those cultural resource managers who seek to interpret them to a wider public; as H. demonstrates, both aspects are intimately linked.
