Dr Miles Russell mystery guest on BBC Radio Solent

BU archaeology lecturer Dr Miles Russell was the mystery guest on BBC Radio Solent’s Nick Girdler show.

The regular feature involves Nick having to guess who his studio guest is, having only been told one clue about why they are in the news.

Miles, a senior lecturer in prehistoric and Roman archaeology, has recently helped to identify the Bosham Head, which was discovered in a flowerbed in Chicester in around 1800, as a statue of Roman Emperor Trajan.

The only clue Nick was given as to Mile’s identity was that he ‘helped solve a 200 year old mystery.’

With a little help from Miles, Nick worked out who he was and the pair discussed the importance of the Bosham Head and where the statue came from.

“The problem is that the face has been so badly battered that no-one thought we would ever be able to identify who it was, and some people doubted whether it was even Roman,” said Miles.

“What we did was a 3D laser scan of it, which picks up all the finer detail of the eyes and the hair and from that you can see things that aren’t normally visible to the human eye.

“Thankfully, most emperors have a highly realistic image of themselves created so as soon as you get the position of the eyes and the hair, you’ve got your man.”

Miles added that he now planned to work with colleagues to use the technology to try and identify other statue heads at museums around the country.

The pair also discussed Bournemouth University’s reputation for archaeology.

Miles said: “We are renowned for doing practical archaeology and training people up to do that. We’re in a fantastic landscape around Bournemouth with Cranborne Chase and Dorset, up onto Salisbury plain. There’s so much archaeology around us so there’s a lot to do.”

You can listen to the feature at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p003d430/clips

BU Archaeologists solve 200 year old mystery of Roman statue

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The identity of a huge stone object that has remained a mystery since it was discovered in Chichester over 200 years ago has been revealed by archaeologists at Bournemouth University (BU).

Dr Miles Russell, a senior lecturer in prehistoric and Roman archaeology at BU and Harry Manley, from the School of Applied Sciences, have used the latest in 3D laser scanning technology to examine the object, known as the Bosham Head.

Little had previously been known about the 170 kg (26 stone), twice life-size stone head – including who it was meant to represent or how it ended up in a flower bed in the vicarage garden in Bosham, where it was discovered in around 1800.

But the BU investigations of the Bosham Head, which is part of the collection at Novium Museum in Chicester, have revealed that it is a statue of Roman Emperor Trajan, and dates from around AD 122.

“The statue is one of the most important finds from Roman Britain and would certainly have been the most impressive,” Dr Russell said, adding that it was the largest Roman statue to have been discovered in Britain so far.

“The problem is because the face has been so battered by weathering – possibly because it was in the sea at one point – people have felt for the last 200 years that there’s not enough left of the face to be that precise on its identification.

“It is a shame that it has been ignored and overlooked for so long, but now that laser scanning has helped resolve its identity, hopefully it will now take pride of place.”

They were able to use 3D laser scans to pick out facial features and a distinctive hairstyle, which led them to conclude that the statue was of Emperor Trajan.

Dr Russell believes the statue, made of Italian marble, was set up by Trajan’s successor, Hadrian, on a visit to Britain in AD 121-122 and would have greeted visitors as they entered Chichester Harbour.

A similar statue of Emperor Trajan was also erected by Hadrian at Ostia Harbour, in Rome.

“The fact that it was on the harbour and mirrors what’s happening in Ostia suggests that this would have been a real monumental greeting not just to Sussex but to the whole of Southern England,” Dr Russell said.

“There would have been this immense statue of the Emperor facing you as you came in to the harbour, so it’s a real Welcome to Britain statue but reminding you that Britain is part of the Roman Empire.”

Dr Russell has been researching the head as part of his work on monumental sculpture and will give a talk on his findings at The Novium museum.

Councillor Eileen Lintill, Cabinet Member for Leisure, Wellbeing and Community Services at Chichester District Council, says: “It is really exciting that more information about the Bosham Head is being uncovered, including new speculation as to who it may depict.

“It has always been a bit of a mystery to museum staff as to who it was meant to represent. It is fascinating that we can learn more about items in The Novium’s collection using new technology such as 3D digital scanning.”

Dr Russell’s lecture – Finding Nero (and other Roman Emperors) – is on Thursday 24 October from 6.30-8pm.

To book tickets or for further information contact The Novium, Tower Street, Chichester on email at thenovium@chichester.gov.uk or call 01243 775888.

BU archaeologists and the mystery of the Roman statue

Archaeologists from BU gained international news coverage after a breakthrough in identifying a Roman statue that had remained a mystery since it was discovered in the 1800s.

Dr Miles Russell and Harry Manley, from the School of Applied Sciences, used the latest in 3D scanning technology to reveal that the mystery stone head – which was discovered in a flowerbed in Bosham, Chicester, in around 1800 – is from a statue of the Roman Emperor Trajan.

The story was featured on the Daily Mail website, the BBC news website, and the Huffington Post, as well as in the Portsmouth News and on various BBC local radio stations, BBC Five Live and regional radio station Wave 105.

It was also covered by specialist new organisations, including Archaeology magazine and Heritage Daily.

Miles, a senior lecturer in prehistoric and Roman archaeology at BU, said: “The key thing is that this is certainly the largest Roman statue found so far in Britain and it’s a major piece of archaeology which has been ignored and overlooked for so long.”

The statue, which is made of Italian marble, would have been erected by Emperor Trajan’s successor Hadrian when he visited Britain in around AD 122.

Miles has been researching the head as part of his work on monumental sculpture and will give a talk on his findings at The Novium museum in Chichester.

His lecture – Finding Nero (and other Roman Emperors) – is on Thursday 24 October from 6.30-8pm. To book tickets or for further information contact The Novium, Tower Street, Chichester on email at thenovium@chichester.gov.uk or call 01243 775888.