Rudge Cup

The Rudge Cup is a small enamelled bronze cup found in 1725 at Rudge, in Wiltshire. The cup was found down a well on the site of a Roman villa. It is important in that it lists five of the forts on the western section of Hadrian's Wall, thus aiding scholars in identifying the forts correctly. The information on the cup has been compared with the two major sources of information regarding forts on the Wall, the Notitia Dignitatum and the Ravenna Cosmography.

The cup is in the possession of the Duke of Northumberland and is on display at Alnwick Castle. A replica of the cup is on display at the British Museum.

Description

It believed that the cup once formed part of a set of ornamental souvenir bowls. It shows a schematic drawing of Hadrian's Wall originally picked out in coloured enamels with turrets and milecastles.

The inscription on the cup is as follows:A MAIS ABALLAVA VXELODUM CAMBOGLANS BANNA

It is believed that these names are from an itinerary of the Wall from west to east, listing the forts as Mais (Bowness), Aballava (Burgh-by-Sands), Uxelodunum (Stanwix), Camboglanna (Castlesteads) and Banna (Birdoswald).

Other similar sources

Amiens Skillet

The Amiens Skillet, or Amiens Patera, is a bronze bowl with a single long handle found at Amiens, France in 1949. It is similar to the Rudge Cup in that it has a representation of the Wall and a list of forts from west to east.

The inscription on the bowl is as follows:MAIS ABALLAVA VXELODVNVM CAMBOG...S BANNA ESICA

The six forts listed on the Amiens Patera match the five forts on the Rudge Cup, with the addition of Aesica (Great Chesters). The list differs from the Notitia Dignitatum and the Ravenna Cosmography, in that it misses out Magnis (Carvoran), which should come between Banna (Birdoswald) and Aesica (Great Chesters). It is believed that this omission is due to the fact that Magnis was not actually on the Wall but was south of the Vallum, having been originally built to guard the Stanegate.

taffordshire Moorlands Patera

The Staffordshire Bowl, or Moorlands Patera, was a bronze bowl found in Staffordshire in 2003. It has an elaborate Celtic-style enamelled decoration and has had a single handle. The inscription on the bowl lists four forts on the Wall

The inscription on the cup is as follows:MAIS COGGABATA VXELODVNVM CAMMOGLANNA RIGOREVALI AELI DRACONIS

The four forts listed do not match the first four forts listed on the Rudge Cup and Amiens Skillet. The second fort on the Staffordshire Bowl is Coggabata (Drumburgh), whereas the other two bowls have Aballava (Burgh-by-Sands) as the second fort. The reason for this discrepancy is unclear, but the small size of Coggabata may explain its omission from the Rudge Cup and Amiens Skillet. It is thought that "Rigorevali Aeli" means "On the line of Hadrian's Wall", as Aelius is the family name of Hadrian. Draconis probably refers to either the manufacturer or the person for whom the bowl was made, Draco.

External references

* [http://www.jstor.org/pss/298096 Description of Amiens Patera]

* [http://www.hadrians-wall.info/hadrianswall/news.htm Descrptions of Rudge Cup and Staffordshire Bowl]

* [http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/pe_prb/r/replica_of_the_rudge_cup.aspx British Museum description of Rudge Cup]

* [http://www.romanmap.com/htm/rudge/rudge.htm Inscriptions on all three cups]

* [http://www.unc.edu/awmc/moorlandspatera.html Description of Moorlands Patera]