Londinium: A Map of Roman London

This map of Roman London is published by Ordnance Survey and the Museum of London. The first edition was published in 1981. The second edition appeared in 1983. A map of Roman London is printed on top of a map of the modern city. In this way, you can compare the new with the old.

What can you see?

(1) You can see the location of the ancient buildings and monuments that archaeologists have found, some of them are still visible, while others are not visible anymore, because they are buried under a modern construction.

(2) Some smaller items are now placed in a museum, in many cases the Museum of London. You can see where these items were found.

 

(3) You can see the “the London Wall Walk,” a pedestrian route along the ancient Roman city wall from Tower Hill (near the river Thames) to Aldersgate (near the Museum of London).

“The London Wall Walk” was established ca. 1980 by the local authorities in collaboration with the Museum of London. It was marked by 21 numbered panels which could be followed in both directions. Every panel included three elements: a drawing, a map, and a short text with information about the specific location.

Panels 1-7 cover the eastern section of the wall, while panels 8-11 cover the northern section. Panels 12-20 cover the Roman fort, while panel 21 is placed by Aldersgate near the Museum of London where the route ends (or begins, if you follow the route in the opposite direction).

Some panels are easy to find and they are still in a good condition. However, others are difficult to find – even using the map – and some of them are in a poor condition, because they have been exposed to all kinds of weather. Sadly, a few panels are impossible to find, because they have disappeared. It seems the local authorities forgot that you have to maintain and repair the panels when the tiles are breaking apart.

This map is a good companion to the book written by Jenny Hall and Ralph Merrifield: Roman London (1986, second edition 2000).

While Hall and Merrifield present the story with text and illustrations, the map serves as a guide which gives you detailed instructions. The scale is 1:2500. One cm on the map equals 25 meters on the ground. Even minor details can be seen here.

[For more information about the London Wall Walk, please see Ed Harris, Walking London Wall (The History Press, 2009).]

I have two critical comments about the map.

(1) By now it is more than twenty years old. Why not publish a new edition which marks the location of recent discoveries? The Roman amphitheatre was discovered during a dig under the Guildhall in 1988. A collection of 43 Roman gold coins was discovered during a dig in Fenchurch Street in the year 2000. Remains of a Roman water-lifting device were discovered during a dig in Gresham Street in 2001.

You can visit the remains of the amphitheatre in the basement under the Guildhall. Read about this ancient monument in Nick Bateman, Roman London's Amphitheatre (2011).

Today the gold coins are on display in the Museum of London. A full-scale reconstruction of the water-lifting device was placed in the rotunda in front of the Museum of London for several years (2002-2010), until it was moved the the Ancient Technology Centre in Dorset. Read about Roman technology in Philip Wilkinson, What the Romans did for us (2001).

(2) In order to study the map, you have to fold it out. When it is folded out, it covers almost one square meter. This is fine, as long as you are indoors and you can place the map on a table. But what if you are walking around London on a windy day? What if it is on a rainy day? In that case, it is not easy to control and protect the map!

In spite of these critical remarks, I think this map is a valuable tool for anyone who wants to study and trace the remains of Roman London.

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Londinium: A descriptive map and guide to Roman London,

Ordnance Survey & the Museum of London,

First edition 1981, second edition 1983

 

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In 2011 Ordnance Survey and the Museum of London published a new edition of
the map of Roman London. Here is the front cover:

 

 

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