The Roman Road Project - The Hard Work We All Need

I recently attended an excellent online lecture about the work of ancient Roman potters. The Archaeological Institute of America hosted Dr. Elizabeth Murphy as she spoke about the lives of these workers. She started with a quote from Herbert Appelbaum's book The Concept of Work: Ancient, Medieval, and Modern, "Work is the spine that structures the way people live, how they make contact with material and social reality, and how they achieve status and self-esteem. As anthropologists, we are interested in work because of what it tells us about the rest of society, based on the viewpoint that basic institutions touch all institutions." And it got me thinking about our project.

In the short time that we've been building our road little road, the work of building has changed our lives in small ways. We're all getting more exercise and enjoying the outdoors immensely even when it's chilly. In a recent informal survey about the Roman road project, every single student (nearly 80) said they were having fun building the road even though it was hard and the stones were heavy. They got to "hang out with friends" as they worked. I've noticed friendships forming that had not been there before. These new friends carry their buckets together as they walk back and forth from the rock pile, chatting as they go. They help each other with the unwieldy wheelbarrow.

Did the Roman soldiers have the same feelings we are now when they worked on a project? Many students also mentioned that they were proud to be building something that would be used by their classmates and help the school with a problem. Did the Romans feel that pride? I think they must have even though they went to bed tired and sore every night.

Appelbaum's quote highlights an aspect of experimental archaeology that resonates with me. The voices of the marginalized of Roman history are rarely heard in literature. Reproducing their work environments using tools and methods they did can help to bring those voices to life. I wrote a piece about this a few months ago for Edutopia. (You can read it here.)

My students have been through a LOT in the past three years with Covid shutdowns, online and hybrid classes, disjointed friendships, and the stress of getting back into the routines of in-person school. This project has been the perfect opportunity for us to come together for a common goal. Students from our last Roman Technology class, the ones who missed out on a big collaborative project due to online learning, regularly stop by the help us. The work keeps us busy, no time to argue, look at our phones, or worry about much of anything. Bucket after bucket. Stone after stone. Our road will soon be done, but its impact will be forever.