Scotland's First Road Network. A Cost Path based analysis of the Roman roads of Scotland
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12//2/29/1Item status
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Erskine, Graeme
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Abstract
The Roman roads of Scotland are a currently under-researched and less understood component of
the Roman occupation of the country. Recent research has focussed mainly on engineering
aspects, and the geographical bias towards the better-preserved network of the south east is
readily apparent. However, the advent of GIS as a new, flexible means of archaeological analysis
allows a re-appreciation of this somewhat overlooked phenomenon.
The use of GIS in archaeology has developed rapidly over the last few decades. A once foreign
and terrifying discipline has been combined with that of archaeology, opening up new means of
investigating old problems. One such important methodology which has found wide use in
archaeological analysis is that of least cost paths, which have been used to assess potential
prehistoric routeways throughout Europe and the Americas.
In this dissertation, cost path models are built to investigate the factors behind Roman road
building in Scotland in three separate invasion periods. By combining several variables in
differentially-weighted models it has been possible to investigate the parameters which may have
influenced where Romans built their roads. Rather than discovering generalised governing laws
about the placement of roads in the province, it is evident that localised factors are the main
consideration in significant stretches of road. A call is made for better understanding of the
remaining archaeology and for greater investigation into the use of Roman roads as a tool of
Imperial control and oppression in the new province.