ABSTRACT
One of the clearest indications of potential buried remains comes from those places where Roman buildings and masonry still stand above ground level. More types of archaeological prospection than can be employed in urban settings are as a rule available for sites in rural areas. The landscape rarely bears traces solely of the Roman period it bears the imprint of many different uses to which men have put it, and sometimes, too, the traces of natural or geographical features. Geophysical surveys undertaken by magnetometer can cover large areas of a site relatively speedily. In many countries there are public bodies - museums, government departments, or research institutes, under a variety of names and titles - who take on the task of planning and funding archaeological work, whether as part of a survey programme. A service is normally performed for a client, and the archaeologist performs within a professional discipline comparable in many ways to that of the architect.
