Roman Art and the Culture of South-East Wales

In place of a narrative history of Roman south Wales, which sees its divisions as the product of military invasion, a case is made in this paper for seeing the coastal strip as essentially belonging to the same zone of civilian culture as that which flourished in Gloucestershire and Somerset. This is emphasised here in the high quality limestone sculpture, richly varied wall-paintings and floor mosaics, which demonstrate such connections. In fact, the Severn was throughout less of a barrier and more of an important route for the passage of men and ideas. This cultural zone outlasted the Roman period and the same area forms a similarly united entity in the early Middle Ages.