FLEET MARSTON, ENGLAND—BBC News reports that a Roman town and cemetery containing more than 400 burials have been unearthed in southeastern England. As many as ten percent of the bodies in the cemetery had been decapitated, according to archaeologist Richard Brown, who said the practice may have been a “normal, albeit marginal burial rite,” or that the dead may have been criminals or outcasts. The excavation team, which worked ahead of the construction of a new rail line, also found a series of enclosures on either side of a major Roman road that connected the ancient towns of Verulamium with Corinium Dobunnorum and the Roman garrison at Alchester. Lead weights and more than 1,200 coins reflect possible trade conducted by those traveling along the road. A stone malting oven suggests that brewing also took place in the town. Brooches, coins, spoons, gaming dice, bells, jars, and Samian tableware have also been recovered. “The excavation is significant in both enabling a clear characterization of this Roman town but also a study of many of its inhabitants,” Brown said. To read about the burial of a possible Roman slave that was uncovered in England, go to "Identifying the Unidentified."
