Skip to main content

Research Repository

Advanced Search

Ideas of Childhood in Roman Britain: The Bioarchaeological and Material Evidence

Gowland, Rebecca

Ideas of Childhood in Roman Britain: The Bioarchaeological and Material Evidence Thumbnail


Authors



Contributors

Martin Millett
Editor

Louise Revell
Editor

Alison Jane Moore
Editor

Abstract

Since the 1990s there has been a burgeoning focus on the experience and treatment of children in the ancient world. The majority of studies have utilized historical and iconographic sources more than the archaeological record, resulting in an image of Roman childhood that is dominated by the view from Rome. For Roman Britain, the archaeological context, especially the funerary domain, is a fruitful source of evidence concerning childhood. The bioarchaeological and material evidence from Romano-British cemeteries is reviewed here. Skeletal remains provide valuable evidence relating to the health and care of past children. The integration of the skeletal data with the material evidence from the funerary context can illuminate past perceptions of childhood and the social construction of this earlier part of the life course. Theoretical and methodological developments within archaeology are paving the way for a more complete understanding of Roman childhood.

Citation

Gowland, R. (2016). Ideas of Childhood in Roman Britain: The Bioarchaeological and Material Evidence. In M. Millett, L. Revell, & A. J. Moore (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of Roman Britain (303-320). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199697731.013.019

Online Publication Date Oct 2, 2014
Publication Date Sep 1, 2016
Deposit Date Oct 24, 2018
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Publisher Oxford University Press
Pages 303-320
Series Title Oxford handbooks
Book Title The Oxford handbook of Roman Britain.
Chapter Number 15
DOI https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199697731.013.019

Files




You might also like



Downloadable Citations