Relativism and the Frontiers of Empire: Critical Perspectives on Roman Soldiers, Communities and Military Landscapes

Relativism and the Frontiers of Empire: Critical Perspectives on Roman Soldiers, Communities and Military Landscapes

Edited by Anna Walas, Andrew Birley 

 

Relativism and the Frontiers of Empire captures a moment in the development of agendas in the study of Rome’s frontiers, whilst highlighting the legacy of a classic anthropological concept. The volume adopts the theme of cultural relativism as an umbrella term, which allows opening to a range of post-colonial, positional and relational approaches that rely on contextualising frontiers within their cultural frameworks and recognising the significance of the standpoint of the scholar in production of knowledge; the two key tenets of anthropological cultural relativism.

H 290 x W 205 mm

236 pages

73 figures, 6 tables

Published Nov 2025

Archaeopress Archaeology

ISBN

Hardback: 9781805830689

Digital: 9781805830696

DOI 10.32028/9781805830689

 

Contents

Dedication
Relativism and the Other in the Study of Rome’s Frontiers – Anna Walas and Andrew Birley

 

Part 1: Roman Frontiers Repositioned

The Demise of Roman Frontier Studies? – David J. Mattingly

Frontiers and the Roman Empire: A Comparative Perspective – Andrew Gardner

From French Conquest to Algerian Independence: French Foreign Legion and the Roman Legionary Base at Lambaesis – Anna Walas

The Frontiers of the Concept: Are Romanization and Islamization Comparable? – José Cristóbal Carvajal López

Reflections on ‘Writing the Legions’: Roman Military Scholarship – Rebecca H. Jones

Visualising Roman Military Bases in Cities: The Challenge of Rome’s Castra Nova – Ian Haynes

 

Part 2: De-Colonial Approaches to Relations on Rome’s Frontiers

Speak Softly and Carry a Big Cross: Diplomacy, Evangelism and Ignorance on Justinian’s African Frontier – Andy Merrills

The Malevolent Spirit of the Red Sea – Michel Reddé

Torcs Transformed: A Fresh Look at Late Iron Age and Romano-British Beaded Torcs – Fraser Hunter

Expressions of Cultural Affiliation Reflecting the Dynamic Creation of Roman Auxiliary Communities – Elizabeth M. Greene

 

Part 3: Relativist Deconstructions of Imperial Culture

Sculpture from Old Carlisle, Cumbria, and What It Tells Us about Life in the Hinterland of Hadrian’s Wall – Lindsay Allason-Jones

Setting the Frame: Further Thoughts on the Suovetaurilia Scene on the Bridgeness Distance Slab – David J. Breeze, Christof Flügel and Erik P. Graafstal

Tracing the Life of a Dipinto: A Revision of the Iarhibol Dipinto from the Military Clerical Office in Dura-Europos – Lucinda Dirven

Effluvia of Empire: Sanitation and the Roman Army – Simon Esmonde Cleary

 

Part 4: Cultural Relativism and Belonging on the Frontiers

The Roman Military on the Syrian Euphrates: Small Finds in Roman Global Worlds – J. A. Baird

The Men of Dura-Europos: A Demographic Profile of the Cohors XX Palmyrenorum – Carol van Driel-Murray

Ceramics and Social Practice on Roman Military Sites – Penelope Allison

Frontiers and Dehumanisation: Mobility, Materiality and Religious Activity in Frontier Zones – Adam Rogers

 

Part 5: Relativism and Cultures of Violence

Which Side Does Sir Dress? – M. C. Bishop

Differentiation and Conflict on the Northern Frontier – Alexander Meyer

The Enemy You Know: Evidence for Complex Relationships and Interpersonal Conflict on the Northern Frontier of Roman Britain – Andrew Birley

 

Simon James, Bibliography