#FindsFriday Pine cone

This week for #FindsFriday we’re continuing our discussions about 21 St Peter’s Street, Colchester.

The waterlogged drain (F7) that we showed you yesterday was exciting for more than one reason – in the area to the west of the drain were the waterlogged remains of a large pine cone (P. pinea).

Three wooden drains (F7, F42, F43) were identified on the site on the same alignment and on either side of the Roman road, suggesting that they were roadside drains. Environmental analysis of soil taken on the site produced high quantities of wet/marshland plants. The drains appear to have been constructed in situ in a channel which was then left to fill up naturally. It was in this soil that the remains of the pine cone were found.

Pine cones would have been imported from the Mediterranean region, where they have been exploited and cultivated for edible pine nuts since prehistory. Once in Britain the pine cone would have been placed in the sun, forcing it to open so the seeds could be harvested. Roman soldiers considered pine nuts to be a delicacy, but they were also used for ritual purposes and potentially as aphrodisiacs. Large amounts of burnt pine were found in the cremated remains of a Roman female in Southwark, London. The quantity of burnt pine suggested that this individual was very affluent to be able to afford such a luxurious import, but also is theorised that it was used to give off a strong perfume during the cremation.

There has been evidence of pine nuts being present in Roman Colchester in both pre and post Boudiccan levels, including at 29-30 Head Street, further indicating the high status of the Roman peoples living in Colchester. It seems interesting that a luxury food item such as this was found inside the backfill of a drain – although we’re not so sure we’d want to eat something that fell in a drain either!