Amulets in Roman Britain: Magic, Materiality, Meaning and Use

By Adam Parker

Investigating the unique magical objects used as amulets in Roman Britain, this book provides an exploration of their materiality and contextual use.

The archaeological evidence for magical and ritual practices in the ancient world includes the material remains of amulets and charms which intended to protect people from the Evil Eye, ill-health, misfortune, as well as more specific harms like sickness, the dangers of childbirth, or the pain of teething. There were a plethora of different shapes of amulets, and these objects were made out of specific materials to be worn or used in certain places. This book draws together the disparate archaeological evidence for these magical practices within a single Roman province for the first time. It considers not only the objects, but their materiality and the significant implications of how and where these objects were used.

The unique dataset gathered for this publication is used to critically approach the subject of magic from multiple analytical directions: firstly, the analysis of the materials as cohesive groups of different objects; secondly, a consideration of some of the most common forms of amulet in the dataset and the implications of their ubiquity; and thirdly, the situating of these objects in spatial contexts and, in particular, a theoretically informed exploration of their material and sensory importance when embodied. By addressing this subject in this way, this book aims to move the scholarly focus away from decontextualised analyses of individual objects types towards a more cohesive understanding of ancient magical practices from a single place.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1350425737
• ISBN13: 9781350425736
• Release Date: November 2028
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.2" x 1.0" x 6.1"