Welcome to the history of York

Founded as a fortress in AD 71, Eboracum housed first the 9th and later the 6th Legion. It soon had a civilian population and boasted fine public and military buildings. Eboracum became one of the most important cities of Roman Britain and, after 211, it was the capital of the province of Britannia Inferior (Lower Britain).

Excavations by the York Archaeological Trust have revealed the complex life of the fortress — with its barrack blocks, streets, bath houses and elaborate system of drains and sewers. In the civilian areas, public and private buildings have been discovered. These include town houses with mosaic floors, and possible bath houses and temples. We have also uncovered substantial river revetments which were built to accommodate Roman ships bringing in goods from the rest of the empire.

Trade

The requirements of both the military and the civilian town necessitated a large supply and distribution network across the empire. The wharves and cobbled streets thronged with men unloading and transporting foodstuffs and goods brought into York from the surrounding area, from other parts of Roman Britain and directly from the continent. Fine pottery, notably Samian ware from France and vessels from the Rhineland, augmented the range made in York. Wine from France, Spain, Italy, Cyprus and Egypt arrived in vast amphorae, as did olive oil from Spain and north Africa. Fish was brought from Spain and exotic fruits from the Middle East.
Craft

Excavations have uncovered evidence for many Roman manufacturing processes. Tools and substantial amounts of debris show that metalworkers were producing a wide range of utensils, tools, jewellery and other artefacts in iron, copper, silver and lead. At Coppergate, unusual evidence for glass production has been unearthed within a military workshop complex and across the Ouse, in Tanner Row, large quantities of leather offcuts, shoe fragments and pieces of tent have been preserved. Pottery and tile kilns were situated near the River Foss, just outside the fortress walls. Initially, vessels and roof tiles were made primarily for the army but they were also used elsewhere in the city. Not all workshop production was exclusively for a local market and it is likely that many of the jet objects found in the western Roman empire were made in York.
Domestic

Some of the Roman civilian houses were simple dwellings. Others were comfortable places with mosaic floors, plastered walls and decorated roofs. Some parts of Roman York had piped water which was supplemented by timber-lined wells. Elegant cups, bowls and jugs of coloured glass, and fine pottery vessels adorned the Roman table — and some fragments have escaped recycling in antiquity. Fine pottery table ware, particularly Samian, was much prized and if it was broken it was often mended with metal staples. The Romans were renowned for their gambling, and board games (such as forms of backgammon and chess) were very popular. Bone dice and counters of glass, pottery, bone and stone have been found in great numbers.
Mitary

York was the base for the campaigns of successive emperors to the north of Hadrian’s Wall. The Trust’s excavations have revealed parts of the original plan of the timber fortress, and its subsequent reorganisation and rebuilding in stone. Although the Roman soldiers kept the fortress relatively tidy, they left behind fragments of armour and belt plates. We have also found weapons such as arrowheads, catapult bolts, lead shot and stone ballista balls. Pieces of patched leather tents may also have belonged to the military. A cheek-piece from a cavalryman’s helmet which was found near the Roman headquarters was probably owned by a mounted escort or messenger attached to the fort.
Religion

The Romans in York worshipped a variety of deities. Soldiers in particular favoured those associated with war — Mars, Hercules, Fortuna and Victoria — and Mercury, messenger to the gods, was thought to protect traders. As well as the offical Roman cults and native British religions, mystery cults associated with death and rebirth were popular. These included the worship of the Egyptian gods Isis and Serapis, and the Persian god Mithras. Another eastern cult, Christianity, grew in popularity in the 4th century. The dead were always buried outside the city, usually along main roads. Cremation burials were common in the 1st and 2nd centuries, but by the 3rd century inhumation (burial intact) was standard. In addition to the tombs occasionally disturbed during road works, the Trust has investigated a cemetery in Blossom Street which illustrates changing burial practice during the late Roman period.
Dress

The presence of the fortress and the rapid growth of the civilian town allowed York to flourish. Its citizens wore fine bracelets of glass, jet or twisted copper wire, copper alloy and gold brooches and pendants, and necklaces of glass and jet beads. Fashionable hairstyles were held in place with elaborate hair pins made of bone or jet. We have also found leather shoes, belts and buckles, some of which show very fine craftsmanship while others are more roughly made. A number of personal items were lost down the drains of the fortress bath house and these include gold pendants and a great many intaglii (carved gemstones) from finger rings. .
Where can I stay?
Accommodation in York.

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