Dr Jo Ball
@drjeball.bsky.social
#Roman & conflict archaeologist; Lecturer in Ancient History at Manchester Met University; University Teacher at the University of Liverpool; Early Career Research Fellow at the Centre for Integrative Research in Conflict Archaeology.
Pinned
Dr Jo Ball
@drjeball.bsky.social
· Jun 30
A mummy portrait from #Roman Egypt, depicting a bearded young man dressed in a white tunic with dark red stripes. We don't know his name, but he probably lived & died towards the end of the C2nd AD, & may well have been a soldier in life 🏺 #AncientBlueSky
November 24, 2025 at 6:52 PM
A mummy portrait from #Roman Egypt, depicting a bearded young man dressed in a white tunic with dark red stripes. We don't know his name, but he probably lived & died towards the end of the C2nd AD, & may well have been a soldier in life 🏺 #AncientBlueSky
Reposted by Dr Jo Ball
A Roman glass funerary urn that was found during excavations in the Botchergate area of Carlisle. Dating to the 1st century AD, the urn can be viewed in Carlisle Cathedral’s treasury. 📸 My own. #FindsFriday #RomanBritain #CarlisleCathedral
November 21, 2025 at 7:24 AM
A Roman glass funerary urn that was found during excavations in the Botchergate area of Carlisle. Dating to the 1st century AD, the urn can be viewed in Carlisle Cathedral’s treasury. 📸 My own. #FindsFriday #RomanBritain #CarlisleCathedral
Reposted by Dr Jo Ball
The base of a 2,000 year old, Late Iron Age Durotrigian style Black Burnished Ware bowl from Winterborne Kingston #Dorset
A series of squiggles were scored into the fabric prior to firing - decoration, doodle or pot-makers mark?
📷 during cleaning in June 2013
#FindsFriday
A series of squiggles were scored into the fabric prior to firing - decoration, doodle or pot-makers mark?
📷 during cleaning in June 2013
#FindsFriday
November 21, 2025 at 7:40 AM
The base of a 2,000 year old, Late Iron Age Durotrigian style Black Burnished Ware bowl from Winterborne Kingston #Dorset
A series of squiggles were scored into the fabric prior to firing - decoration, doodle or pot-makers mark?
📷 during cleaning in June 2013
#FindsFriday
A series of squiggles were scored into the fabric prior to firing - decoration, doodle or pot-makers mark?
📷 during cleaning in June 2013
#FindsFriday
A fragment of #Roman pottery, into which a sketch of a rowing ship has been incised - I love the little details, like the oars coming down into the water, & the ram at the front of the ship. A lovely piece of everyday art, made nearly 2000 years ago 🏺 #AncientBlueSky
November 20, 2025 at 8:14 PM
A fragment of #Roman pottery, into which a sketch of a rowing ship has been incised - I love the little details, like the oars coming down into the water, & the ram at the front of the ship. A lovely piece of everyday art, made nearly 2000 years ago 🏺 #AncientBlueSky
A #Roman glass bottle, in blue, white, & green glass with gold gilt decoration. It was probably once used to hold perfume or perfumed oil, about 1800-2000 years ago.
November 19, 2025 at 10:29 PM
A #Roman glass bottle, in blue, white, & green glass with gold gilt decoration. It was probably once used to hold perfume or perfumed oil, about 1800-2000 years ago.
A selection of Roman glassware, mostly from the eastern provinces & made 1600-2000 years ago - and a clear demonstration of how much the Romans like a bit of colour in their homes!
November 16, 2025 at 11:15 AM
A selection of Roman glassware, mostly from the eastern provinces & made 1600-2000 years ago - and a clear demonstration of how much the Romans like a bit of colour in their homes!
Reposted by Dr Jo Ball
New post this week starting a new series on (Colonia Martia Julia Valeria) Salona! The colony was established by Caesar in 47 BCE, and would later be the birthplace of Diocletian:
www.roamintheempire.com/index.php/20...
#RomanSiteSaturday #Archaeology #RomanArchaeology #AncientBlueSky 🏺
www.roamintheempire.com/index.php/20...
#RomanSiteSaturday #Archaeology #RomanArchaeology #AncientBlueSky 🏺
November 15, 2025 at 5:40 PM
New post this week starting a new series on (Colonia Martia Julia Valeria) Salona! The colony was established by Caesar in 47 BCE, and would later be the birthplace of Diocletian:
www.roamintheempire.com/index.php/20...
#RomanSiteSaturday #Archaeology #RomanArchaeology #AncientBlueSky 🏺
www.roamintheempire.com/index.php/20...
#RomanSiteSaturday #Archaeology #RomanArchaeology #AncientBlueSky 🏺
A #Roman wooden barrel, once used to bring supplies to the soldiers stationed at Bar Hill fort on the Antonine Wall (Scotland) - hopefully it was a little luxury that made frontier life a bit more bearable! #AncientBlueSky
November 14, 2025 at 7:55 PM
A #Roman wooden barrel, once used to bring supplies to the soldiers stationed at Bar Hill fort on the Antonine Wall (Scotland) - hopefully it was a little luxury that made frontier life a bit more bearable! #AncientBlueSky
November 9, 2025 at 9:51 AM
A #Roman oil lamp in the shape of a gladiator helmet (of a Thraex gladiator); the green glaze makes it a really unusual example! #AncientBlueSky
November 7, 2025 at 11:56 PM
A #Roman oil lamp in the shape of a gladiator helmet (of a Thraex gladiator); the green glaze makes it a really unusual example! #AncientBlueSky
A #Roman helmet with a bit of a decorative surprise - on the back, it features two little mice chasing after loaves of panis quadratus bread.
Made about 1850 years ago, it once belonged to a soldier named Julius Mansuetus - did he choose this unusual decoration? 🐭 (📷Christies) 🏺 #AncientBlueSky
Made about 1850 years ago, it once belonged to a soldier named Julius Mansuetus - did he choose this unusual decoration? 🐭 (📷Christies) 🏺 #AncientBlueSky
November 4, 2025 at 11:05 PM
A #Roman helmet with a bit of a decorative surprise - on the back, it features two little mice chasing after loaves of panis quadratus bread.
Made about 1850 years ago, it once belonged to a soldier named Julius Mansuetus - did he choose this unusual decoration? 🐭 (📷Christies) 🏺 #AncientBlueSky
Made about 1850 years ago, it once belonged to a soldier named Julius Mansuetus - did he choose this unusual decoration? 🐭 (📷Christies) 🏺 #AncientBlueSky
Reposted by Dr Jo Ball
#MosaicMonday takes us back to the #MuseodelleCiviltà in #Rome, this time to look at the dazzling #opussectile floor of the #domus of #PortaMarina from #OstiaAntica, 385-388 CE. Its complex #geometric design makes it the most perfect floor of its kind in #LateAntiquity. #AncientBluesky 🏺
November 3, 2025 at 11:23 PM
#MosaicMonday takes us back to the #MuseodelleCiviltà in #Rome, this time to look at the dazzling #opussectile floor of the #domus of #PortaMarina from #OstiaAntica, 385-388 CE. Its complex #geometric design makes it the most perfect floor of its kind in #LateAntiquity. #AncientBluesky 🏺
Reposted by Dr Jo Ball
A tiny but very charming #Etruscan amber pendant in the shape of a squatting #monkey, height 4.7 cm.
Found in Vetulonia, #Italy, dating late 8th/early 7th century BC.
Photo: Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici della Toscana
🏺 #archaeology
Found in Vetulonia, #Italy, dating late 8th/early 7th century BC.
Photo: Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici della Toscana
🏺 #archaeology
November 4, 2025 at 7:14 AM
A tiny but very charming #Etruscan amber pendant in the shape of a squatting #monkey, height 4.7 cm.
Found in Vetulonia, #Italy, dating late 8th/early 7th century BC.
Photo: Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici della Toscana
🏺 #archaeology
Found in Vetulonia, #Italy, dating late 8th/early 7th century BC.
Photo: Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici della Toscana
🏺 #archaeology
A lovely #Roman mosaic found in the grounds of a villa in Rabat, Malta, with a popular 'drinking doves' design - two doves drinking from a large bowl #MosaicMonday #AncientBlueSky
November 3, 2025 at 8:06 PM
A lovely #Roman mosaic found in the grounds of a villa in Rabat, Malta, with a popular 'drinking doves' design - two doves drinking from a large bowl #MosaicMonday #AncientBlueSky
The beautiful #Roman ruins of Ostia Antica, a port city located just a short distance from #Rome - such an amazing & well-preserved site! 🏺 #AncientBlueSky #AncientSiteSunday
October 26, 2025 at 9:13 AM
The beautiful #Roman ruins of Ostia Antica, a port city located just a short distance from #Rome - such an amazing & well-preserved site! 🏺 #AncientBlueSky #AncientSiteSunday
The tombstone of a #Roman woman named Curatia Dinysia, who died at the age of 40 in Deva Victrix (modern #Chester, Britain); she is pictured on the stone in a banqueting scene. Her tombstone later became part of the city wall #AncientBlueSky
October 21, 2025 at 7:43 PM
The tombstone of a #Roman woman named Curatia Dinysia, who died at the age of 40 in Deva Victrix (modern #Chester, Britain); she is pictured on the stone in a banqueting scene. Her tombstone later became part of the city wall #AncientBlueSky
In the #Roman world, roads & crossroads had their own guardian spirits - the Lares Viales (roads) & the Lares Compitales (crossroads). Travellers would offer them sacrifices in the hope of arriving & then returning home safely (travel was dangerous back then!) 🏺 #AncientBlueSky #MythologyMonday
October 20, 2025 at 9:21 PM
In the #Roman world, roads & crossroads had their own guardian spirits - the Lares Viales (roads) & the Lares Compitales (crossroads). Travellers would offer them sacrifices in the hope of arriving & then returning home safely (travel was dangerous back then!) 🏺 #AncientBlueSky #MythologyMonday
Reposted by Dr Jo Ball
Such empathy with these huddled beasts on a 10th/11thC whalebone chesspiece, perhaps a rook or a bishop, snuggling up against cold and damp autumn days…
www.britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
www.britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
October 19, 2025 at 9:40 PM
Such empathy with these huddled beasts on a 10th/11thC whalebone chesspiece, perhaps a rook or a bishop, snuggling up against cold and damp autumn days…
www.britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
www.britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
A beautiful #Roman glass bowl, with striped bands in blue, yellow, & clear/white glass. It was made about 2000 years ago, & was found in the area around Mount Vesuvius, after being buried in the AD 79 eruption 🏺 #AncientBlueSky #Archaeology
October 19, 2025 at 10:48 PM
A beautiful #Roman glass bowl, with striped bands in blue, yellow, & clear/white glass. It was made about 2000 years ago, & was found in the area around Mount Vesuvius, after being buried in the AD 79 eruption 🏺 #AncientBlueSky #Archaeology
A beautiful #Roman glass bottle in a beautiful shade of amber-orange with white swirly decoration - a beautiful piece of ancient glass made more than 1600 years ago.
October 16, 2025 at 6:58 PM
A beautiful #Roman glass bottle in a beautiful shade of amber-orange with white swirly decoration - a beautiful piece of ancient glass made more than 1600 years ago.
An adorable little #Roman figurine of a mouse playing a trumpet - because, why not?
#Archaeology #AncientBlueSky
#Archaeology #AncientBlueSky
October 14, 2025 at 9:27 PM
An adorable little #Roman figurine of a mouse playing a trumpet - because, why not?
#Archaeology #AncientBlueSky
#Archaeology #AncientBlueSky
A #Roman figurine of a dog, shown lying down with its back legs curled underneath, looking at something behind it. Dogs feature quite prominently in Roman everyday art, associated with loyalty & healing, & valued for their companionship (just like today!) 🐶 🏺 #AncientBlueSky #Archaeology
October 13, 2025 at 7:38 AM
A #Roman figurine of a dog, shown lying down with its back legs curled underneath, looking at something behind it. Dogs feature quite prominently in Roman everyday art, associated with loyalty & healing, & valued for their companionship (just like today!) 🐶 🏺 #AncientBlueSky #Archaeology
Reposted by Dr Jo Ball
I imagine this guy shouting at museum patrons with a squeaky little voice, ‘C’mon, you think you can take me? Look what I did with the last guy!’.
This green-glazed terracotta gladiator is ready to rumble, but only his competitor’s foot remains. 🏺 1/
Roman, 1st c. CE, #BritishMuseum
📸 me
This green-glazed terracotta gladiator is ready to rumble, but only his competitor’s foot remains. 🏺 1/
Roman, 1st c. CE, #BritishMuseum
📸 me
October 10, 2025 at 6:51 PM
I imagine this guy shouting at museum patrons with a squeaky little voice, ‘C’mon, you think you can take me? Look what I did with the last guy!’.
This green-glazed terracotta gladiator is ready to rumble, but only his competitor’s foot remains. 🏺 1/
Roman, 1st c. CE, #BritishMuseum
📸 me
This green-glazed terracotta gladiator is ready to rumble, but only his competitor’s foot remains. 🏺 1/
Roman, 1st c. CE, #BritishMuseum
📸 me
The story deepens! We now know the person who brought a #Roman tombstone to New Orleans was a US soldier stationed in Italy during WW2; I like to think that Sextus Congenius Verus - the tombstone 'owner', & a military man himself - would have understood...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Roman grave marker found in New Orleans yard left there by US soldier’s granddaughter
Erin Scott O’Brien says grandfather Charles Paddock brought back artifact with him from second world war
www.theguardian.com
October 10, 2025 at 2:59 PM
The story deepens! We now know the person who brought a #Roman tombstone to New Orleans was a US soldier stationed in Italy during WW2; I like to think that Sextus Congenius Verus - the tombstone 'owner', & a military man himself - would have understood...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
A #Roman glass cup, in amber glass with irregular blue, red, & white splodgy decoration #Archaeology #RomanArchaeology #AncientBlueSky
October 8, 2025 at 7:31 PM
A #Roman glass cup, in amber glass with irregular blue, red, & white splodgy decoration #Archaeology #RomanArchaeology #AncientBlueSky