tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19922276.post7843147151891070011..comments2023-11-29T07:39:34.401+00:00Comments on Carla Nayland Historical Fiction: Durham CathedralCarlahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11901028520813891575noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19922276.post-52052746439572037902013-01-19T18:40:55.658+00:002013-01-19T18:40:55.658+00:00Gabriele - yes, it's a magnificent cathedral. ...Gabriele - yes, it's a magnificent cathedral. Well worth adding to your itinerary next time you visit the north of England, if you haven't already seen it. It's probably a good thing they don't permit interior photography - the cathedral gets a lot of visitors, so it would be difficult for a photographer to get an uncluttered shot, and the number of people trying would probably be very distracting for everyone else, including all the other photographers. Carlahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11901028520813891575noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19922276.post-5634953501242590092013-01-19T14:15:17.711+00:002013-01-19T14:15:17.711+00:00British rain may erode even Roman roads in the lon...British rain may erode even Roman roads in the long run. :-)<br /><br />That's a splendidly looking cathedral. Pity that photographing isn't allowed inside - that's the one advantage of Russia; bribes still work there and so I got my interior shots. ;-)Gabriele Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17205770868139083575noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19922276.post-10360638183600657222013-01-18T19:45:55.902+00:002013-01-18T19:45:55.902+00:00There's a line in one of the Vindolanda letter...There's a line in one of the Vindolanda letters that says something like 'sorry the waggons with your delivery were late, the roads were impassable' or words to that effect. Which might just be an all-purpose excuse of the Reggie Perrin 'Signal failure at White City!' type, or may genuinely indicate that some of the roads in the north of Roman Britain were on the flaky side. Carlahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11901028520813891575noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19922276.post-64101531559078479152013-01-18T02:25:43.372+00:002013-01-18T02:25:43.372+00:00I thought about filching paving stones, but probab...I thought about filching paving stones, but probably underestimated how much of that can go on over 1500 years.<br /><br />And, yes, not every Roman road necessarily fits the stereotype - heavy bottoming and all that.Rickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16932015378213238346noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19922276.post-23278350743681215782013-01-17T12:39:07.549+00:002013-01-17T12:39:07.549+00:00If the paving stones are useful and the road isn&#...If the paving stones are useful and the road isn't (because it goes to places that are no longer important, or a key link like a bridge has gone) they may well be removed by farmers or other people for building material (this happened to quite a lot of Hadrian's Wall, for example). It may also depend on the road construction. I remember reading a study of Roman roads written by a retired civil engineer, and he commented that although some Roman roads were massively built with large stones and strong foundations ('heavy bottoming' was the rather delightful term), many others were quite lightly constructed, more like a gravel track. I imagine the lighter-built roads would be less durable than the heavier ones, and would wash and wear away with weather over time. Even the heavier built roads would break up over time from the action of water and frost forming potholes. Structures often end up buried by soil build-up and vegetation encroachment, sometimes to a considerable depth, and I imagine a road on a flood plain might end up under a lot of silt after a few big floods.Carlahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11901028520813891575noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19922276.post-32012652473065413012013-01-17T02:20:44.708+00:002013-01-17T02:20:44.708+00:00No surprise that Roman roads disappear in built-up...No surprise that Roman roads disappear in built-up areas. In more rural areas I picture as more durable - farmers would have to do a lot of work moving paving stones in order to cultivate a narrow strip of land.<br /><br />But I don't really know what happens to land over long time periods. Over 1500+ years, I suppose erosion on the one hand, or deposition and burial on the other (whatever the proper term is for gradual buildup of soil), can dispose of even a Roman road. <br /><br />The Wikipedia article on Pity Me made for amusing reading! Rickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16932015378213238346noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19922276.post-81145765360493936722013-01-14T21:26:24.448+00:002013-01-14T21:26:24.448+00:00Roman roads do disappear, often where there have b...Roman roads do disappear, often where there have been extensive changes in land use or development - which can happen in 1500 years. The exact line of Roman roads is often lost close to towns, for example, presumably because routeways changed as the town developed. Or if the river changed its course through its flood plain, that might mean the road was no longer useful and then it would go out of use and disappear under fields or whatever. The road went through Chester-le-Street ('Street' or 'Strat' is a giveaway in place names), where there was a Roman fort, and another stretch is known at Great Stainton further south, near Darlington. Presumably the two originally joined up, and if you drew a straight line between the two you probably wouldn't be far off, given Roman engineers' propensity for straight lines unless there was a good reason against.<br /><br />Yes, Pity Me has a very strange name, hasn't it? I have no idea of its origin. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pity_Me" rel="nofollow">Wikipedia</a> has some theories, if you're interested. On Quebec I have no idea; maybe it's a modern name and it's named after the Canadian city for some reason? Your guess is as good as mine. Carlahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11901028520813891575noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19922276.post-32193852999711758192013-01-13T03:19:42.982+00:002013-01-13T03:19:42.982+00:00Wonderful picture! Is the bridge in the background...Wonderful picture! Is the bridge in the background Prebends Bridge? <br /><br />I'm a bit surprised that the alignment of a Roman road would be uncertain!<br /><br />Looking at the map, first I was distracted by a nearby place called Quebec - then even more distracted by another place called Pity Me.<br /><br />Rickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16932015378213238346noreply@blogger.com