Michelle Wood

During research into Milecastles 1-3, I discovered that there is now no obvious evidence of these; M1 (also known as Stott’s Plow) is thought to be situated in Wallsend under an area called Miller’s Dene, M2 near the Fossway in Walker and M3 at the north end of Stephen’s Street, Byker.

Since the milecastles are now under roads, instead I looked for evidence and inspiration at the Roman Fort of Segedunum, which marks the end of Hadrian’s Wall. This proved an amazing resource and I was particularly drawn to the collections of Roman artifacts laid out in glass cabinets. I like how these are arranged in the cabinets and how they show evidence of their excavation as well as traces of their manufacture and use by human hands. I focused on some of the small and seemingly inconsequential objects, like broken pots, oil lamps and spindlewhorls (that would’ve been used to hand spin wool). Some of my recent prints are of collections of natural and often small objects like insects, stones and shells which I’ve translated into 3-4 layer, hand-cut rubber stamps using linocut techniques. So as I was drawing out and cutting and refining the shapes of the Roman objects from printmaking rubber, I reflected on how the artifacts would have been cut from the ground and cleaned of debris. The final print consists of a collection of 7 small artifacts, each comprising 3 colour layers, giving shape, form and detail to the objects. Each object has its own space on the paper, just as the actual object has its own place in the cabinet.

There is also a hint of a Roman border printed at the corners of the paper. As a final connection to place, the shapes are printed and cut from a vintage map of Hadrian’s Wall and, if you look closely, you’ll see text and lines referencing the wall as it runs across Northumberland.