The Roman Footwear from Vindolanda

Nearly 5,000 Roman shoes have been recovered from the archaeological deposits at Vindolanda, the fort near Hadrian’s Wall. They belonged to people living on a northern military frontier between the late first and fourth centuries CE, and their shapes, materials and decoration preserve details that written histories rarely record.

Elizabeth M. Greene draws on examples from the collection to investigate how footwear was made, worn and valued. Shoes can offer clues to personal adornment, work and the ways people used different spaces within the settlement. Worn and discarded footwear preserves something of how Vindolanda’s inhabitants dressed and moved through the fort, beyond their roles in its garrison.