Ancient History Student Handbook

Parts adapted from the University of Queensland Classics and Ancient History Writing Guide

Contents
Contents........................................................................................................... 2 The Research Book........................................................................................... 5 Essay Writing.................................................................................................... 7 TERMINOLOGY.................................................................................................. 8 STARTING YOUR RESEARCH............................................................................. 9 CRITICAL USE OF SOURCES.............................................................................. 9 RESEARCH AND NOTE-TAKING.......................................................................12 REFERENCING................................................................................................. 14 ACADEMIC PROSE........................................................................................... 16 STRUCTURE OF THE ESSAY............................................................................ 17 PRESENTATION............................................................................................... 18 SAMPLE ESSAY OUTLINE.................................................................................19 ESSAY CHECKLIST.......................................................................................... 20 Sample Essay: Christianity in Roman Britain..................................................22

Figure 1: Structuring student inquiry 2

Figure 2: Aspects of inquiry

THE RESEARCH BOOK

Purchase an A4 notebook which will become the research book for your assignment. Assign the first few pages for the development of your hypothesis and essay planning. This should also become a space for you to break down the assignment task to clearly identify what is being asked of you. What are the key words? (see p.8) Initial Hypothesis This should be based on your background reading and analysis of the assessment task

Reflection Has further research altered what your essay will be about? Are there enough sources for your argument? Do you want to argue a different position?

Changed Hypothesis

Final Hypothesis Essay Plan

It is likely that your essay plan will evolve as you conduct further research. Use the research booklet to document the changes. For a detailed discussion of essay structure see p.17. Introduction - What will be my hypothesis? Body (What points am I going to make to support my hypothesis?) Point 1 - What point am I going to make to support my hypothesis? Point 2 - What point am I going to make to support my hypothesis? Point 3 - What point am I going to make to support my hypothesis? Point 4 - What point am I going to make to support my hypothesis? Conclusion

Assign a page for your reference list. Record all of the sources from which you have gathered information. (see p.14) The remainder of the notebook should be dedicated to research notes. (see p.12) Highlight key aspects your research notes to identify your critical analysis of sources.

ESSAY WRITING
Essays are structured pieces of persuasive writing containing an argument and supporting evidence. They must present a hypothesis and validate it with evidence. In Ancient History there is a great deal of assessment that is essay-based. You must answer the question you are set. This sounds simple, but it is surprising how many people actually fail to answer the question! Drafting and proofreading will help you determine whether you have fulfilled your goals. You will be given essays that have different word limits, but their fundamental structure and purpose remains the same. When you are preparing essays, one of your key goals should be to learn about your topic. If you are able to get the information into your head, your task becomes infinitely easier!

TERMINOLOGY
Your teacher will frame the essay questions using a variety of terms. It is essential you understand what these mean if you are to answer the question properly. Here is a list of the most common terms and what they mean: a) b) c) d) e) f) g) h) i) j) Assess: Determine the value or significance Analyse: Consider in detail Explain: Offer reasons for To what extent: Quantify the importance (i.e., to a large extent, a small extent) Compare: Examine and note similarities Contrast: Emphasise the differences (some questions will ask you to compare and contrast, i.e., look for similarities and differences) Discuss: Examine and consider (this does not simply mean describe!) Account for: Give reasons why Illustrate: Clarify or demonstrate with examples (this does not mean you need to draw anything!) Consider: Judge and come to an opinion

Regardless of the question, every essay paper must be a piece of argumentative writing. Do not simply tell the story! If you are unsure of exactly what the essay requires, please see your teacher as soon as possible.

STARTING YOUR RESEARCH

Now that youve chosen a topic, you can begin to research your essay. You may feel overwhelmed by the many books and articles on the subject and unsure of where to begin. If you dont know much about the topic, a good place to start would be a good general history of the period or standard textbooks, such as The Cambridge Ancient History, From the Gracchi to Nero or A Penguin History of Greece. Alternatively, the Oxford Classical Dictionary is an excellent starting point for a synopsis of a historical period, place or person.

CRITICAL USE OF SOURCES

In writing your essay, you should present evidence that will support your answer to the question. In Classics and Ancient History, there are two types of sources of information that we use, ancient sources and modern works. Remember that ancient sources may contain both evidence and opinion. Modern works can only add opinion.

Ancient Sources
These should form the backbone of your essay. Every ancient historian must base his or her argument on the evidence from the ancient world. There are many different types of ancient evidence. A. Literary Sources: The works of many writers from antiquity have survived to the present day, and these are indispensable to all scholars, even those who work primarily with archaeological evidence. Ancient authors such as Tacitus, Livy, Thucydides and Plato wrote in Latin or Greek, but their works are available to us in English translations. There is no substitute for a knowledge of the ancient languages, but English translations will suffice for undergraduate papers. The two major translation series are Penguin paperbacks and the Loeb series (small hardcover books, green for Greek and red for Latin, which contain the original text facing the translation). Always read the ancient writers critically they often have an agenda to push, and do so shamelessly. B. Archaeological Remains: Archaeological material has shed invaluable light on the ancient world, and provided evidence that either corroborates or contradicts the literary sources. Archaeological evidence could be a pot illustrating scenes from mythology, food remains, or even the ruins of a Mycenaean citadel. Reports from archaeological excavations are often published in journals or book series. C. Inscriptions: Inscriptions were set up throughout the ancient Greek and Roman world. They could chart the career of an important politician, indicate a boundary

marker, or record a peace treaty. Scholars usually publish such inscriptions in books or articles with a commentary. D. Papyri: Egypt has provided us with tens of thousands of documents preserved on papyri (the most widely used writing material in the Graeco-Roman world), dating particularly from the period of the Roman empire. Mainly written in Greek, they cover an enormous range of subject matter, from official regulations and petitions to tax receipts and private letters. E. Coins: Money makes the world go round, and the ancients have left plenty of it for us to find. Coins might commemorate a military victory, an emperors accession, marriage or a politicians family ancestry. In a world without television and newspapers, coins were essential propaganda tools for spreading a political agenda. NB: Archaeological evidence is not necessarily unbiased in contrast with the literary sources. Reports of digs are still the product of the excavator, and thus often omit or pass over details the writer considers irrelevant. Other aspects, such as the thoroughness of the dig and whether the site has been looted in antiquity or modern times, must also be considered. Notes on the use of Ancient Sources: When you are reading your ancient sources, remember to bear the following things in mind and think about how they affect the usefulness of the work as a piece of historical evidence: 1. TIME: Is the text contemporaneous with the event, or was it written afterwards? If so, how much later? 2. BIAS: Consider how the authors place of origin, social status, religion, political leanings etc., may affect his (and very occasionally, her) objectivity. 3. PURPOSE OF WORK: What is its intended audience? 4. SKILLS: How reliable is the author? What sources did he rely on? What techniques did he use?

Modern Works
Modern scholars aim to synthesise and analyse the evidence from the ancient world to produce reliable and unbiased historical accounts of the period. Be aware that modern historians often fall into the same traps as writers from antiquity. Always read the writings of modern classical historians with the same critical eye as you would the ancient writers, and go back and check their sources for crucial points of your argument. Modern scholarship takes several forms:

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A. Books: Books represent the culmination of many years of scholarship, and often synthesise large amounts of evidence into an account of a particular historical period, author, theme, or region. As it takes many years to write and publish a book, they are often beginning to become out of date by the time they hit the library shelves. Be sure to note the date when a book was published it could be seriously out of date if it was released in the 1930s and new evidence or theories have come to light since then. However, there are some classic treatments that will always be worth reading, such as the New Zealander Sir Ronald Symes The Roman Revolution, or Emily Vermeules Greece in the Bronze Age. Your course bibliography will guide you as to which books are the most relevant to your topic. Always consult your lecturer or tutor if you have any doubts about a source. B. Journal Articles: Much more specific scholarly research is published in academic journals, which appear at least once a year, with some published biannually or quarterly. Articles will usually address one specific historical problem and attempt to solve it. Owing to the shorter publication time, historical debates can often be tracked over the years through journal articles. C. Commentaries: Commentaries are written to accompany and elucidate the works of classical authors. In a commentary, the author will provide in-depth, sometimes line-by-line analysis of the historical and/or literary and grammatical complexities of a work. These can be extremely useful for passages whose interpretation is subject to debate. D. Reviews: Some journals, such as Classical Review, are devoted to publishing reviews of recent books. These can be helpful in deciding whether a particular scholars view is controversial and whether his/her arguments withstand scholarly scrutiny by his/her peers. Notes on the use of Modern Works: Modern works should be used judiciously. Do not simply quote large chunks of text from standard text books. You should use these works to inform your awareness and reading of relevant ancient sources and to become aware of scholarly debates.

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RESEARCH AND NOTE-TAKING

Always start your research early. There is nothing worse than going to the library a week before your essay is due and finding the shelves completely cleared out. It is your responsibility to secure your research material ahead of time. It takes time to research, plan, write and then edit and re-write a paper. Leave yourself plenty of time to complete all the steps. You should research actively, not passively. What is the difference?

Here is a brief illustration:

Marcus is reading Stocktons The Gracchi while watching the latest episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. He often stops to highlight sentences, but does not make any notes. Fulvia is also reading the The Gracchi, but adopts a different approach, conscientiously taking notes that are of relevance to her essay topic. When necessary, she notes down references in the footnotes for later reference. Marcus is a passive reader: highlighting does not equal understanding! Fulvia, on the other hand, is actively engaging with the text and noting what is relevant to her specific question at hand. You should always research with the aim of your question in mind. If you are writing a paper on Augustus moral legislation, you do not need to make copious notes on his skills as a general. Often it is a good idea to skim through an article or book chapter first to determine whether it will be of use to your essay. If it does prove to be useful, you can then read it again, taking in-depth notes. Similarly, dont spend all your time reading entire books when only a chapter or two may be relevant to your paper use the contents and index to guide your reading. When reading a text, ask yourself the following questions: 1) Who wrote it and when? 2) What is the genre of the text? (history, biography, philosophical treatise, defence speech, letter, tragedy, comedy, etc.) 3) What is the purpose of the text? (to entertain, inform, to acquit a defendant) 4) What are the biases of the writer? 5) What are the writers sources? 6) What socio-political environment was the text written in?

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Taking good notes takes practice. Here is a way of setting out your page to ensure logical arrangement of material and so that you can follow your notes when the time comes to write your essay! Top of the page: Here you should record the bibliographical details of the work from which you are taking notes.

Bibliographic Details
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Author Title Year of Publication Publisher Place of Publication Page reference

Herodotus, The Histories, trans. de Slincourt, A., revised edition, 1996, Penguin, Harmondsworth. Column 1: References Column 2: Notes Column 3: Critical Use of Sources 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Book 3, Chapter 33 (p.167, Penguin ed.) Cambyses said to be a madman who suffered from the sacred sickness. Cambyses kills the son of Prexaspes to prove he is not mad. Accuracy Validity Cross references Relevance to hypothesis How would you use it?

Consider Herodotus hostile treatment of Cambyses throughout Book 3. What part do such stories play in the larger narrative?

Book 4, Chapter 34 (pp. 167-168, Penguin ed.)

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REFERENCING
You must support your assertions with references to the ancient evidence and modern discussions. A system of referencing allows you to show readers where you obtained the information from so they can go and look it up for themselves. A list of all the source materials, known as a bibliography, must be included at the end of your essay. The bibliography should be clearly divided into two sections: ancient sources and modern works. As your bibliography is a list of works consulted, it should not only include those books specifically cited in the text of your essay, but also those that you have used in your research.

When do I need to put in a reference?

You must reference any information you have taken from both ancient sources and modern works. There are two types of quotations:

A. Direct Quotation
A direct quotation is a word-for-word extract taken from the original work. The general rules for all direct quotations, ancient and modern, are: 1. Keep them short. 2. The fewer you have in any given essay, the better. 3. If the quotation contains a mistake or misspelling, you must not correct it when you are reproducing the text. To show that you know there is a problem and it is not your fault, place [sic] directly after the mistake. 4. For quotations less than one sentence long, place them within the text of your paragraph, clearly marked by quotation marks, . For example: Rankin (1987: 145) states, We may doubt whether Vindex wished to replace the emperor at Rome. 5. For a quotation longer than one sentence, you should set it below the text of your paragraph and indent it; you do not need to place the quotation in quotation marks. You should place it in single-line spacing (the rest of your essay should be 1.5-line or double-line spacing). For example: Suetonius (Nero 4) states, Indeed there is no kind of relationship that he did not violate in his career of crime. He put to death Antonia, daughter of Claudius, for refusing to marry him after Poppaeas death, charging her with an attempt at revolution; and he treated in the same way all others who were in any way connected with him by blood or by marriage.

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B. Indirect Quotation
An indirect quotation is when you have used an idea or opinion from another source but have put it into your own words. For example: Suetonius Life of Domitian depicts the emperor in an unfavourable light (Jones 1996:xv). How do I reference correctly? The Harvard system is perhaps the easiest referencing system. It employs references both within the body of the essay (for a single reference) and in footnotes (for more than one reference). Below is a quick example of the Harvard style referencing system, for a modern book: It has been suggested that Valerius Asiaticus was a social climber (Syme 1958: 602). As you can see, the reference is placed before the full stop, it is enclosed in brackets, stating the authors surname, and the year of publication, followed by a colon and the page number. In your bibliography, books, journals, reviews and websites will have more complete information provided about them. In the bibliography, this work, for example, would appear thus: Syme, R. 1958, Tacitus, Clarendon Press, Oxford. The bibliographic entry should include the authors surname and initial(s), the year of publication, the title of the work, the publisher and the place of publication. Here is an example of an ancient source cited using the Harvard system: The Germani were noted for their strict moral code (Tac. Germ. 19). The reference contains the abbreviated name of the ancient author, Tacitus, the abbreviated name of his work, the Germania, and the number of the chapter that contains the evidence for this assertion. Abbreviations of ancient works and of some basic modern works are standardised and can be found at the beginning of the Oxford Classical Dictionary (third edition). Sometimes you will be able to provide book, chapter and line numbers for works, but it will depend on the layout of the source you are using. Providing more information is always better than providing less information about a source; that way your reader can find it if he/she wishes. The bibliographic entry for the above work would appear thus: Tacitus, Germania, ed. Anderson, J. G. C., 1938, Clarendon Press, Oxford. A bibliographic entry for an ancient source should include the authors name, the title, the editor, the year of publication, publisher and place of publication.

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N.B.: 1. Dates should be listed as follows: AD 69; 76 BC. You may use AD and BC (or BCE and CE) with or without stops (i.e. AD or A.D., BC or B.C., etc). Centuries must be named fully, e.g. the third century BC. 2. Proper names should always be capitalised. Certain terms also require capitalization, e.g. Iron Age, Roman Empire.

ACADEMIC PROSE
You must use academic prose when you write your essays and answer your exam questions. This means that you must write in complete, logical, structured sentences and paragraphs. Academic prose need not be boring, but it should avoid sensationalism. Always check grammar and spelling. Be aware that many word processors will not recognise technical terms and names from the ancient world you will not be able to rely on your computer to pick up many errors. Many essays too have been sabotaged by the use of the autocorrect function. You must use language that is appropriate for scholarly work: it should be clear, succinct, and objective. Never use racist, sexist, or offensive language. The use of colloquialisms is inappropriate. Do not use contractions. Avoid the excessive use of jargon. Employ a formal tone, but do not use flowery, oblique, or pretentious language. If a simple word will do, use it. Although you will see it done, try to avoid the use of personal pronouns, such as I, we, and you. For example, instead of writing In this essay I will demonstrate, use an impersonal construction such as In this essay it will be demonstrated. This technique maintains an objective, scholarly tone. Avoid making sweeping generalizations, as they can be all too easily discredited or questioned, such as, All Roman slaves lived a miserable existence.

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STRUCTURE OF THE ESSAY

Your essay should weave together the available ancient evidence and modern scholarship into a cohesive synthesis of the issue. To achieve the highest marks, you need to show evidence of wide reading, demonstrate understanding of modern scholarly debates, and provide an original evaluation of the subject matter.

Planning your Essay

When planning your essay, keep the word length in mind. Do not anticipate having five paragraphs dealing with Marius military reforms in a 1,500 word essay on the collapse of the Roman republic. Every piece of argumentative writing should have the same basic structure.

Introduction
The introduction is your opening paragraph and must do two things: 1) Answer the question asked. 2) Lay out your line of argument for the essay. This is known as the hypothesis. An introduction should be concise and to the point. For example, if your essay question was Why did the Roman Republic collapse?, your introduction should clearly state the reasons why the Roman Republic collapsed and how you will prove this in subsequent paragraphs.

Body
In the body of your essay, you should lay out your evidence to support the hypothesis proposed in the introduction. For example, if you were answering the above question about the fall of the Roman Republic, each paragraph should focus on a specific reason for the collapse of the Republic, including evidence from both ancient and modern sources. Each paragraph should begin with a topic sentence that introduces the specific issue to be dealt with. For example, in the Roman Republic question, one paragraph could start with: One of the major reasons the Roman Republic collapsed was the growing importance of the army in politics. In that paragraph, you would then demonstrate with examples from the sources how the armys changing status helped to lead to the fall of the Republic. Every assertion you make must be supported by at least one reference to an ancient source, whether it be a literary text or a piece of archaeological evidence. A key component of any argumentative essay is your critical use of sources. In order to accomplish this, you must demonstrate to the marker that you understand the biases inherent in certain sources, or why one writers version of events must be believed over anothers.

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Conclusion
Your conclusion is a statement of what your essay has argued or proved it is not the place to introduce new evidence. Your conclusion and introduction must always agree on the position that you take in answering the question. If you change your mind while writing your essay, make sure you rewrite your paper to ensure your argument is consistent.

Editing
You should not be handing in your first draft. Make sure you leave plenty of time for rewriting to ensure your argument is both consistent and convincing, and the evidence supports your point of view. You should also be reading for errors in spelling and grammar the most professional paper will seem amateur if it is littered with typos.

PRESENTATION
It is of course in your own interest to present your arguments clearly in terms of structure, layout, and style. If your essay is relatively easy to read, your reader will be able to engage with your argument much more easily and willingly. Essays should always be typewritten. You have free access in the library to computers running word processors. There are printers available in the library. You must give yourself ample time when preparing your essays so that computer or printer failure will not cause you to hand your paper in late. You cannot submit essays in electronic form they must be printed out. Essays should have a margin of at least 2.5 cm on the left-hand side of the page. This allows room for your marker to make comments on your work. Essays should be in 1.5 or double line spacing. Single line spaced essays become extremely difficult for markers to read. Ideally you should use Times New Roman font in 12-point, no smaller. Please use clean white paper to print your essay upon.

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SAMPLE ESSAY OUTLINE

This is a very simple outline of an essay, illustrating how to construct an argument from introduction to conclusion and arrange your evidence into logical paragraphs.

Can Homers Iliad be used as historical evidence for Bronze Age society? Introduction
Statement of hypothesis: This paper will argue that Homers epic poemthe Iliad cannot be used as historical evidence for Bronze Age society as the archaeological evidence conflicts with the world presented in the epic. Notice how the introduction takes a definitive stand on the question posed. The marker is in no doubt as to what the writer will be arguing in this essay.

Body
Each paragraph should tackle one specific issue, presenting the evidence from ancient and modern sources that support your argument. Ensure you employ your sources critically: tell the marker why a source is or isnt to be trusted.

Paragraph 1: Difference: Politics

Bronze Age: Many different city states Iliad: One cohesive Greece, with Agamemnon as supreme leader Bronze Age: Wanax the supreme leader Iliad: Agamemnon described as (W)anax and Basileus

Paragraph 2: Difference: Warfare

Bronze Age: Chariots used in warfare Iliad: Warriors dismount from chariots before engaging in battle But: Odysseus boar-tusk helmet, Ajaxs tower shield match archaeological evidence

It is necessary to present evidence from the other point of view to show that you are aware of both sides of the argument. Do not simply ignore conflicting views present them and then, if you can, defeat them! It should be added that it may be the case that on reflection you believe there are strengths in both sides of the argument. While refraining from sitting on the fence, you certainly can argue that a question is not a simple yes or no, right or wrong.

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Paragraph 3: Difference: Culture

Bronze Age: Inhumation practised, tholos tombs, cists Iliad: No inhumation, rather cremation Bronze Age: Incredibly bureaucratic culture Iliad: A chief culture, like that found at Lefkandi

Conclusion
Restatement of hypothesis: Therefore, since it has been shown that (despite some similarities) the archaeological remains of the Bronze Age world give a very different picture to the society depicted in Homers Iliad, the epic cannot be used as historical evidence for Bronze Age society. The conclusion introduces no new ideas, but simply sums up the evidence and shows that the hypothesis outlined in the introduction has now been proved correct.

ESSAY CHECKLIST
When you have finished your essay, ask yourself the following questions 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. Does my essay answer the question? Do my introduction and conclusion agree? Does my argument flow logically from paragraph to paragraph? Is every point backed up with evidence from the ancient sources? Have I used my sources critically? Are all pieces of evidence properly referenced? Have I acknowledged all direct quotations from ancient and modern sources? Have I checked that my spelling and punctuation are correct? Have I employed technical terms in the correct way? Have I separated my bibliography into ancient sources and modern works? Is my essay within the word limit?

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WRITING DRAFTS
Although every respectable historian knows the importance of gathering information before completing a historical essay, most also know how important it is to begin the writing process as early as possibleThe almost unanimous testimony of good writers in all disciplines is that writing is always difficult and that they must write several drafts to be satisfied with an essay or a book. Your final draft must express a clear understanding of your own thoughts. But the way to that understanding may lead through several drafts. Writing, taking notes, rereading, and revising clarifies your thoughts and strengthens your hold on your own ideas. Inexperienced writers often assume that an accomplished writer simply does the entire research fist and then writes. On the contrary, most experienced writers find that no matter how much they know about a subject at the start, the act of writing forces them to confront new problems and new questions, gives them new leads, sends them off in search of more information to pursue those new leads, and eventually takes them to conclusions different from those with which they began. For the experienced writer, the writing proceeds in a process of leaping forward and jumping back, but above all involves some sorts of writing very early and continuing until the essay is completed. Marius, R. & Page, M. (2007) A Guide to Writing about History (p. 106-107)

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SAMPLE ESSAY: CHRISTIANITY IN ROMAN BRITAIN

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The isles of Britain between the first and fifth century AD represented the unlimited capabilities of Roman expansion. Such was the influence of the Roman Empire that very few areas of native societies would remain untouched. Britain was no exception. In time much of native British society was affected, including the role and significance of religion. Whilst people may contend that relatively little is known about the individual beliefs of the people of Roman Britain, the following pages will attempt to show otherwise. Of major importance in the years being considered was the birth and growth of Christianity. Such was its role in transforming individuals and societies elsewhere in the Empire, that an examination of archaeology and literature would suggest similar impacts throughout Roman Britain by the end of the fourth century. To reach such a conclusion one must begin with an assessment of ancient literature available concerning this subject. By establishing an initial understanding, archaeology can be assessed within this context. Three major areas of archaeological discoveries will be used as evidence in asserting the significance of Christianity in the Romano-British belief system. This includes possible church structures, remains pointing towards Christianity in everyday life and finally a look at what insight can be gained from Christian graves. Bringing all of this together allows for a knowledgeable claim that Christianity had a following from people in Roman Britain.

A number of early authors mention the presence of Christianity but fail to describe what a personal belief for Romano-British subjects would look like. The first of these is known to be Tertullian writing around 200 AD of places in Britain inaccessible to the Romans,

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but which have submitted to Christ (Against the Jews in Ireland 1996, p. 204). Critics regard such a statement as a possible attempt to glorify a still illegal church which continued to face active persecution (Petts 2003, p. 30). The fact that Tertullian was a strong advocator of Christianity often causes readers to doubt this claim. Added to this is the knowledge of Roman Britains position within the Empire. Being so far away from the centre of Christian growth makes it difficult to think the religion had spread to Britain by the end of the second century. However, when considering the Christian movement was unstoppable under persecution the claim becomes more plausible. Tertullians comments may suggest that in the climate of the times it was not an overstatement to believe Christianity had a presence in Britain (Petts 2003).

This presence is all but assured by the fourth century. With the toleration of Christianity proclaimed under the rule of Constantine, Christianity in Britain is represented at the Council of Arles in 314 A.D: Eborius, bishop of the city of York in the province of Britain, Restitutus, bishop of the city of London in the above-mentioned province, Adelphius, bishop of the city Colonia Londenensium, also Sacerdus, presbyter, and Arminius, deacon. (Council of Arles in Ireland 1996, p. 204) Such a recording is critical in providing evidence of a Christian community by the early years of the fourth century. It is most likely though that these officials only represented a minority of Christians on the island. Frend (1967) argues that Christianity in Britain was nothing more than another cult brought from the East. This may be assumed, but it was clear that these early days were paving the way for successful growth of the

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religion into the lives of Romano-British people. The Confessions of St Patrick provide an account of a Romano-British Christian. Estimated to be written towards the end of fourth century and beginning of the fifth, Patricks writings attests to at least three generations of Christians in his family (Bieler 1967, p. 129). This would indicate a definite Christian presence in Roman Britain but should not be accepted as the norm as there are few reasons to believe Christianity was the major religion.

In general it appears that there is limited literature directly concerning the Christian community within Roman Britain. This is a common theme for outlying provinces of the empire in the west (Frend 1967). The majority of what is available has been written by people outside of Britain and only when it is in their self interest. As a result, the literature does not aid greatly in understanding how the personal belief system of a Christian may have looked. This need not be a major concern, as what has been provided is still constructive in indicating that a Christian belief system would have been taking root throughout certain clusters of people by the fourth century AD. A broad awareness of this allows the assessment of archaeological evidence within the right framework.

For Christians in the fourth century a place was needed for meeting, worship, prayer and other rituals. The church building was the answer to this need. However, prior to the Edict of Milan in 313 AD, times of meeting would have been confined to discreet locations such as houses to avoid mass persecution. The one example of this style of congregation in Roman Britain can be found at the villa of Lullingstone. The Christian nature of this villa is apparent in paintings uncovered (Meates 1987). The images include

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a large chi-rho symbol flanked by an alpha and omega and figures depicting early Christian prayer positions (Petts 2003). The chi-rho symbol is known to represent Christianity in the religions early years (Thomas 1981). Although it is considered that the rooms were re-organised for use as a house church in the second half of the fourth century the villa is confirmation that such meetings took place in Roman Britain.

As the public nature of Christianity changed under Constantines leadership the creation of purpose built churches became more apparent. Yet Roman Britain throughout the fourth century experienced a considerable decline in new public buildings and the maintenance of existing structures (Petts 2003). As a result many church buildings were adapted to the existing structures (Petts 2003). A disputed example of this is located at the town of Calleva. King (1983) is an advocate for the belief that the likely use of this structure was for pagan cults. A claim like this can be disputed by understanding the challenges facing early Christians. The Christian community in the early fourth century was still learning how exactly they were going to express themselves. They were followers of a new religion with relatively few institutionalised practices. As a result there appears to be evidence of pagan practices in the Romano-British Christian community (Watts 1991). However, adaptation of buildings used by pagans would not necessarily have been considered an evil practice as it was later. A few notable similarities between Christian and pagan worship meetings include site location, altars and the interior decoration of buildings (Watts 1991). This link therefore allows the basilica at Calleva to be labelled Christian without being an opposition to pagan themes. Yet the reason to believe the basilica at Calleva had an overtly Christian use includes the

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narthex, nave, aisles, and an apse (Boon 1974). One feature that is substantial in prescribing a Christian use is the presence of a transept. There is yet to be found a pagan basilica possessing such a feature (Boon 1974). Confidence can be taken from the knowledge that similar church structures have been found elsewhere in the Empire. The most common example is the small fourth-century church of St Severin from Cologne (Petts 2003, p. 59). It appears therefore that the architectural layout of the basilica at Calleva could be attributed to Christian use.

As the tolerance of Christianity within the Roman Empire continued to increase during the fourth century, it is no surprise that at this time evidence for Christian practice presents itself. No longer would converts feel the risks that possibly once existed and therefore church growth would have increased. The increase in numbers naturally lead from house gatherings to the creation of larger meeting areas, namely churches. The number of churches found relating to Roman Britain is minimal compared to other areas of the Empire, but it is still conformation of the growing practice of Christians meeting and sharing their faith.

With the increase of churches during the fourth century, there is also the emergence of archaeological evidence pointing towards other aspects of the Christian belief system. Of course the time of religious celebrations such as the Eucharist were of utmost importance for the Christian believer, but outside of these times, Christianity would still have been prominent in many areas of peoples lives. This has been revealed through the ways in which believers expressed their faith.

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The expression of Christianity has been found in a variety of forms throughout the Roman Britain province. One of the most prominent however is the use of symbolism. Just like in todays culture a logo or word can represent an image, belief or lifestyle, so to would ancient symbolism. The chi-rho symbol is regarded as the earliest and most widespread symbol of Christianity (Watts 1991, p. 202). Its design originally involved the capital letter P overlapped with the capital letter X. Later on this was to be changed to a simpler capital letter P with a stroke across its shaft. The value of this symbol lies in the letters being associated with the Greek letters alpha and omega (Petts, 2003, p. 104). These letters refer to the book of Revelation which reads I am Alpha and Omega say the Lord God, which is and which was and which is to come (Rev 1:8). A primary example of this symbolic use is found in the Water Newton treasure dated no later than the fourth century AD. Discovered in 1975, the Water Newton treasure contains numerous objects such as strainers and bowls displaying the chi-rho symbol (Painter 1977). This is consistent with the idea that Christians would adopt the principle of a pagan activity and apply it in a Christian format (Watts 1991, p. 201). Rather than engraving materials to honour pagan beliefs, Christians would conduct the same activity to honour their God. It is interesting to note that the possible reason for depositing such objects may have been out of fear of persecution from other cults and theft from raiders outside the Empire (Painter 1977). The fact that Christians were prepared to take such action sheds light on the great value attributed to these objects.

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The possibility of the chi-rho symbol being confused with pagan imagery is doubtful. The emergence of this symbol throughout the Roman Empire during the fourth century aligns with the acceptance of Christianity in general. Just as important is the placement of this symbol in art work. Usage of the symbol found in the Hinton St Mary and Frampton pavements has yet to be found in pagan imagery (Toynbee 1968, p. 181). It is not a stretch of the imagination to consider that this was a way for followers of this new religion to identify themselves and promote it at the same time. The principles underlying the use of such a symbol seem very applicable to the Christian community later on in history which used crosses and other symbolism to achieve the same goal.

A final aspect that is of immense value when assessing the state of Christianity in Roman Britain is death. A persons belief system would often affect how this event was to be approached. Archaeological finds relating to cemeteries should align with the picture already being painted of Christianity in Roman Britain. Like many issues though there are conflicting views. When it comes to Christian burial in Roman Britain, the dispute surrounds the idea of whether or not it is possible to identify Christian graves (Petts, 2003, p. 137).

To begin with it is important to know what would have been the consensus regarding burial throughout the Roman Empire. It is generally viewed that inhumation burials, reintroduced during the third century, was the widely accepted way of doing things (Sparey-Green 2003, p. 93). This practice reveals graves containing a body, laid out at full length, on its back (Collingwood and Richmond 1969). An initial assumption by

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academics was that burials aligned west-east could be labelled as Christian. The Lankhills cemetery is often quoted as an example. At this site the majority of graves were found to display consistency in organisation and layout (Clarke 1979). Graves did not overlap each other, much more care was taken in digging the graves and relatively few contained grave goods. Organisation of this kind leads one to believe that the cemetery must have been managed. Dating this cemetery to the period 300 320 AD raises the possibility that the church was powerful enough at this stage to influence the lay out of a cemetery (Macdonald 1977). This view has since been widely criticised. Thomas (1981) suggests that it is unlikely that Christians were the pioneers of this ritual; instead it is more likely that believers were influenced by prior existing non-Christian communities. This explanation can also be attributed to the presence of grave goods in fourth century cemeteries. Depending on the zealousness of a Roman-British Christian, pagan traditions would have still pervaded areas of their lives, especially when facing death. Clearly centuries of engrained pagan practices were not going to disappear overnight (Watts 1991, p. 66). Grave goods are evidence of Roman-British Christians still clinging to aspects of their former religion. Even though the Church frowned upon certain grave furniture, other items may have been accepted given their relatively inoffensive nature. This includes hobnails, broken pots and purposefully positioned stones found at the Ancaster and Cannington cemeteries (Watts 1991, p. 73).

Although the evidence for Christian burials in Roman Britain is considered tenuous it should not be disregarded. It cannot be denied that a Christian belief system was

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emerging intertwined with older pagan traditions throughout the fourth century. This is consistent with what the archaeological evidence is revealing in other areas.

The fourth century can truly be labelled as the time when Christianity became prominent throughout the Roman Empire. Although the literary sources concerning the Christian belief system in Roman Britain are scarce, there is enough to acknowledge some form of presence on the island. The extra evidence examined in the previous pages support this. What is most intriguing is the nature of Christianity in these early years. Believers of this faith were experiencing great change. Coming out of years of intense persecution, it can be said that Christians were faced with a never before seen opportunity to define their belief. In all the aspects analysed, it appears that to some extent habits from pagan tradition were adopted in a matter that was appropriate for Christianity. This was seen in the use of basilicas for meetings, engraving of objects and burial practices. This is a plausible explanation when understood in context. The cultural norms would have been influencing Christian believers as they developed certain aspects of their religion. From what has been discussed here it can be proposed that Christian believers in the fourth century lived a religion that was discovering itself inside a changing Empire.

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Ancient Sources

Acts of the Council of Arles in Ireland, S 1996, Roman Britain: A Sourcebok, Routledge, London.

Tertullian, Against the Jews in Ireland, S 1996, Roman Britain: A Sourcebok, Routledge, London.

Archaeological and Secondary Sources

Boon, GC 1974, Silchester, The Roman Town of Calleva, David and Charles, Newton Abbot.

Bieler, L 1967, St Patrick and the British Church, in Barley, MW & Hanson, RPC (ed.), Christianity in Britain, 300 700, Leicester University Press, Leicester City.

Clarke, G 1979, The Roman Cemetery at Lankhills, Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Collingwood, RG and Richmond I 1969, The Archaeology of Roman Britain , Methuen, London.

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Frend, WHC 1967, The Christianization of Roman Britain, in MW Barley and RPC Hanson (ed.), Christianity in Britain, 300 700, Leicester University Press, Leicester City.

King, A 1983, The Silchester Church Reconsidered, Oxford Journal of Archaeology, no. 2, pp. 225-237.

Macdonald, J 1977, Pagan Religions and Burial Practices in Roman Britain, in R Reece (ed.), Burial in the Roman World, Council for British Archaeology, London.

Meates, GW 1979, The Roman Villa at Lullingstone, Kent Archaeological Society, Maidstone.

Painter, KS 1977, The Water Newton Early Christian Silver, British Museum Publications, London.

Petts, D 2003, Christianity in Roman Britain, Tempus Publishing, Gloucestershire.

Philpott, R 1991, Burial Practices in Roman Britain, Tempvs Reparatvm, Oxford.

Sparey-Green, C 2003, Where are the Christians? Late Roman Cemeteries in Britain, in M Carver (ed.), The Cross Goes North: Process of Conversion in Northern Europe, AD 300-1300, York Medieval Press, York.

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Thomas, C 1981, Christianity in Roman Britain to AD 500, Batsford, London.

Toynbee, JMC 1967, Pagan Motifs and Practices in Christian Art and Ritual in Roman Britain, in MW Barley and RPC Hanson (ed.), Christianity in Britain, 300-700, Leicester University Press, Leicester City.

Watts, D 1991, Christians and Pagans in Roman Britain, Routledge, London.

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