This activity is laid out in a design on how the Roman legionary soldiers would have lived at Trimontium. It also shows what items they would have lived with. Guiding Questions: What items did the Romans use that we still use today? What modern technology do you think the Romans would have wanted to have? How and where did the Roman soldiers at Trimontium live?

This bucket was made of wood and iron. One of the iron hoops to keep the wood together is modern because the original one was missing. Buckets were used to get water from a well. People would go to a well and fill up a bucket of water for drinking, their washing, and for their animals. 

This wooden bucket was found at the site of the Roman fort at Newstead in Roxburghshire. It is a well-preserved example of stave construction, a popular technique used by Roman carpenters for vessels. It dates from between 140 and 180 AD. Photo © National Museums Scotland

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Trimontium Museum

Bucket

Spear heads were made of iron. Cavalry forces used them. Their length let soldiers fight on horseback. This spear may have also been used as a throwing spear, or to help guard the fort.

Soldiers would carve their initials onto their weapons. They did this to claim ownership. It was a helpful way to find their spear when lined up with dozens of others that looked just like it.

Iron spearhead with punctured inscription indicating ownership, from the Roman site at Newstead (Trimontium). 80-100 AD. Spears were used by the cavalry and would allow to engage in combat from a distance. May have also been used by throwing the spear, again for long range combat.

Spearhead

This is an iron scythe. A scythe was a farm tool used to cut hay and crops from fields. The Romans would have cut hay for food for the horses. There would have been a wooden handle attached on the square end of the scythe, however it has been lost to time. 

Scythe

The metal boss was in the middle of the shield. The Romans would have called it an "Umbo." It protected the soldier's hand. This shield boss is made of iron, and was so strong, it could have been used as a weapon itself. Soldiers couldn’t rely on just their armor. They needed a strong shield too.

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Shield boss

The Roman legionary solider made up a majority of the Roman army. So their sword had to be strong and capable for defeating Rome's enemies. The "Gladius" is made of iron, so it was very strong and durable. It was the right size for close combat with enemy soldiers. This sword was the standard for the Roman soldier. So, it is the sword most associated with this type of soldier. This gladius is missing its handle. It would have been made of leather to grip the sword comfortably.

Legionary sword for gladius. Image © National Museums Scotland.

Legionary Sword

Roman craft-workers knew how to tan leather by soaking it with tree bark. This made it tougher and long-lasting. Leather shoes were often decorated by cutting, piercing and stamping patterns into them. They would use leather ties to tie up the shoe on the foot. 

Leather shoe with pierced ornament of lines. Radiating from the laichet holes from the Roman site at Newstead

Shoe

The Romans brought their own horses over to Britain. Horses were used for transportation. They would have been used by the cavalry in battle. Horses were a very important animal for the Romans to have. 

Skull of a horse, Equus caballus, Roman Camp, Newstead, Melrose, Roxburghshire.

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Horse Skull

This is a ceramic (pottery) lamp. The Romans did not have things such as light bulbs or electricity, so they had to rely on fire and oil lamps to see in the dark. Oil would have been poured in the circle in the middle. A wick made of cotton fabric or wax would have been put in the little hole at the end and lit. The oil would have kept the wick burning for at least a couple of hours.  

This lamp is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and shows decoration of a Pegasus.  Public Domain.

This is a fragment of a game board with game pieces on the top. 

We know that the little bits of polished glass and pottery are game pieces because we have stories written by the Romans about their love of games. There are also pictures of Romans playing games with pieces just like these ones. This is a tile that would have been re-used to be a game board. They also recycled broken pieces of Samian ware pottery to use as game counters. The Romans loved their board games, and lots of game pieces were found at Trimontium Fort. 

They had games similar to ours, such as Tic-Tac-Toe.

Fragment of a gaming board, from Newstead, Roxburghshire. Gaming pieces pictured with the game board are accessioned separately.

Roman style game 

Gaming Board

This type of bowl was used by the soldiers to eat their meals. They are quite basic in comparison to the fine glass and decorated red ceramics (Samian ware) used by officers at the fort. They were cheap and easy to make. 

Coarse ware bowl. In several parts reconstructed with modern restorations.

Coarse Ware Bowl

Bowl

These bronze kettles were used by the  soldiers to cook their food. The metal chain  attached on either side of the kettle. The chain then connected to a hook over top of a fire. The food would have cooked in the kettle over the fire. Every soldier had to have one to cook with.  But they may have also shared with other soldiers in the same barracks block. 

Bronze camp kettle from the Roman site at Newstead. Four holes around rim where former handle held. Hole in bottom. Image with kettle and chain © National Museums Scotland

Bronze Kettle

Bronze Kettles and chain

Kettle

These panels of leather would have once been part of a tent. While on the road, soldiers would have to camp outside, and would have to carry their own tents with them. When not in use, the soldiers would have kept their tents in their barracks.  

Organic materials like leather and wood survived at Trimontium because of the very special characteristics of the soil. 

Tent panel of leather, oblong with stitch marks, from the Roman site at Newstead. Leather was used for a wide range of objects necessary to a Roman soldier, including tents, saddles, harness, shoes, clothing, belts, purses, shields and shield covers. Elsewhere in the Roman empire, there is even evidence of taxes demanded in hides.


Photo © National Museums Scotland

Tent Panel

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This flagon is made of coarse ware pottery. Coarse ware pottery was cheap and easy to make. The soldiers would not have been able to afford glass or red glazed pottery (Samian Ware), so they would use this instead.  It was also used for storage and transportation. This flagon would hold liquids like wine and olive oil brought from Rome and the Mediterranean area. 

Coarse ware flagon. In several parts reconstructed with possible modern restorations.

Coarse Ware Flagon

Flagon

This pitchfork is made from iron. Pitchforks were used to pick up and move hay or straw around. Hay was used to feed the horses. This pitchfork top would have been attached to a long wooden stick.  

Iron pitchfork from the Roman site at Newstead (Trimontium), 140 - 180 AD
The pitchfork has a perforated tang where it slotted into a handle. One arm is broken.

Used to move/handle loose material such as hay, straw, and manure.

Various agricultural implements, including scythes, sickles, rakes and hoes were found at the Roman fort of Newstead, suggesting that cultivation occurred near the site.

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Pitchfork

This is a water flask that would have held water. Soldiers would have carried this with them while on the road for their drinking water. It would have had a leather strip to carry on their packs or wear on their soldiers. 

This iron water bottle is from the site of the Roman fort at Newstead in Roxburghshire. It was used between 140 and 180 AD. Examples of Roman metal flasks are extremely rare.

The iron body of the circular Roman water bottle has been made in two identical halves. A bronze neck and a pair of straps with decorative plates have been soldered onto the iron.

The form of water bottles carried by soldiers has changed little over the centuries. 

Photo © National Museums Scotland

Standards for Military Barracks

College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework