Today we had a stressful day, but a pretty successful one. Ethan had a meeting the the Dean of St. Albans Cathedral and Abbey and I was tagging along to see the church and explore the Roman city of Verulamium. Sadly, we had issues finding the right train station to get to St. Albans and then more issues with tickets. After spending far too much time on the tube, we got on the train on a very rainy day and headed to St. Albans.
We went to the cathedral-abbey first and explored a very amazing church. With Norman and Saxon origins, the church grew into a massive abbey complex and then dwindled again after the Dissolution. It was revived and is now the thriving cathedral of the diocese. The church is named for St. Alban, a 3rd century martyr who was a Roman citizen in the local town. He was martyred for converting to Christianity and sheltering a priest. His cult probably began around the middle of the 5th century and there is a shrine that holds relics of the saint in the cathedral.
St. Alban is depicted in the new nave screen, which depicts seven martyrs. Four are locals: St. Alban, St. Amphibalus, George Tankerfield, and Alban Roe. They range in period from the 3rd century to the 17th. The other three are St. Elizabeth Romano, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and Oscar Romero. All three come from the 20th century and are meant to remember the sacrifices still made for the church. Together, they represent early Christianity, Anglicanism, Roman Catholicism, Russian Orthodoxy, and Lutheranism.
The cathedral has centuries of history, most of which I learned from Ethan after his talk with the dean. The Lady Chapel, pictured below, was for a long period separated from the rest of the church. There was quite literally a road running between the church and the chapel building. The chapel was used as the local grammar school before being reincorporated to the cathedral.
The Wallingford Screen was built in the late 15th century but was devastated by the Dissolution. Every statue in the screen was torn down and destroyed. In the 19th century, the cathedral went through major restoration and renovation. The two main benefactors disagreed on how the screen should look. One felt that it should be restored into its original state and the other wanted to go more modern (and more egocentric) with just a silhouette of himself and Queen Victoria. Apparently the conflict went all the way to the House of Lords, and luckily (in our opinion) the more traditional restoration won out.
The abbey greatly benefited in the 12th century when an Englishman was elected Pope. Nicholas Breakspear, better known as Adrian IV, had been educated at the Abbey School of St. Albans and his selection as Pope increase interest in St. Albans as a pilgrimage.
After the church visit, I headed to the Verulamium Museum and site while Ethan met with the Dean. I first headed to the theater at Verulamium. Unlike the other theaters I've seen this trip, it is a true theater, not amphitheater. The first theater at the site was built around 140 CE and was enlarged in 160 CE. The theater could fit 7,000 people and featured columns 5.8 meters tall on the stage. The theater eventually fell out of disuse, even before the Roman occupation ended. It's unclear why it was no longer used.
Around the theater were the local shops and a few homes. One third century villa contained an underground shrine, possibly suggesting that Christianity had forced pagan rituals into private settings. Although, it may have just been a private shrine and that might be too much of an attachment.
Below is a pendant with a triskele, which is a design featured in cultures around the world. It was particularly important in Celtic culture and art. I'm curious how this was influenced by the Roman occupation and vice versa.
The gold ring below has a depiction of an ear of wheat. The native Catavellauni tribe had a culture dominated by farming and it seems that the Romans continued the tradition. Along with the ring, there were also depictions of Ceres, the goddess of the harvest and crops.
Below is a variation on the classic pennanular brooch. The pair of silver brooches were connected by a thin chain. I'm unsure if this would have been done to hold a cloak or just as a decorative statement. Either way it seems like a fairly unique and beautiful piece.
There were many burials around Verulamium, fitting for a large Roman city. They varied in their use of inhumation and cremation. Some of the burials were in ornate lead coffins and others were in more simple stone ones. One very interesting find was this Septimius Severus coin found in a child's grave. The coin, shown with the child's teeth, was placed in the mouth of the child for burial and the copper in the coin turned the teeth a bluish-green color. The coin probably dates the child's death to around 210 CE.
The depiction of Venus below, done in bronze, was originally depicted holding a golden apple. The golden apple was won by Venus in the judgment of Paris, when she bribed him with the love of the most beautiful woman, Helen. And we all know how that ended. As a decline of Roman religion in Verulamium, the statue was found in what is believed to be a scrap pile in the workshop of a metalworker.
Verulamium had a unique triangular temple at a major intersection of roads. The temple was dedicated to Cybele, an Anatolian goddess imported to Rome, and her consort, Attis. The ceremonies dedicated to the gods involved the sacrifice of an ox, pine cones, palm leaves, and ceremonial pottery, all of which were found in the site of the temple. The skull off an ox is shown below.
From the museum I went into Verulamium Park, which contains some more Roman artifacts. Sadly, I was only able to peak at a large mosaic since the building had been closed for the day. I did get to walk along portions of the city walls and see the foundation of a massive gateway. The walls were a later addition, being added towards the end of the 3rd century. Unlike most sites I have been to, the military presence in Verulamium was much smaller and the site was never really a fort.
I headed back towards the abbey through the park to meet Ethan in the rainy weather. Unfortunately, due to a miscommunication, as I arrived back at the abbey, Ethan headed to the museum to find me.
I took a few more minutes to walk around the abbey before Ethan and I reunited. We eventually found each other and headed back to the train station. By the time we were back to London, we were wet, hot, sweaty, and ready for a break. Though the day was successful, the travel logistics were messy and the rain dampened both our hair and our moods. But with a little rest, we were able to rally for dinner and a quiet evening.
Fun Fact #30: There were several breeds of Roman dogs at Verulamium, shown by the various dog skeletons found at the site. Romans had three divisions for different types of dogs, villatici or house dogs, venatici or sporting dogs, and pastorales or shepherds' dogs. The villatici could be small lap dogs and the sporting dogs were divided into further categories: fighting (pugnacious) and hunting (celeres, sagaces).
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