Smithsonian magazine explores some of the many ways to celebrate the nation and looks back at how previous big birthdays were commemorated amid domestic turmoil
* This article was originally published here

The site proved to be the Western necropolis of the Roman military camp of Novae. Located on the right bank of the Danube, Novae was one of the key fortresses defending the Moesian Limes (the northern frontier of the province of Moesia). It was built around 45 A.D. and housed the Legio VIII Augusta until they were replaced by Vespasian with Legio I Italica in 70 A.D. Legio I Italica garrisoned Novae for the next 350 years at least.



A rare imitation of a Carolingian gold coin worn as a pendant likely by a soldier in the Viking Great Army that invaded England in 865 A.D. has been discovered in Norfolk. This type of coin was made in workshops in Frisia (today part of the Netherlands) and all 22 of these imitation solidi found in Britain have been found along the route of the Great Army. The one found in Norfolk is a relatively high quality example.
The coin is an imitation of a gold solidus of Louis the Pious (r. 814-840), son of Charlemagne, minted around 816 when he was crowned Holy Roman Empire. It is considered one of the finest of all Carolingian coins and one of the rarest, with only four confirmed examples recorded. The draped and laureate bust of Louis on the obverse is inspired by ancient Roman issues, like this 335 A.D. solidus of Constantine I. The inscription of the obverse is DN HLVDOVVICVS IMP ΛVG (meaning “Our Lord Louis August Emperor” an imperial Roman style); the reverse inscription is MVNVS DIVINVM (“Divine Gift”), referring to the wreath/crown or to the cross inside of it.
The Frisian imitations were made much later than the originals. Most of the examples have been found in coin hoards dating to the 870s-880s, and they are very rough with crude outline portrait busts and chicken scratch inscriptions that barely have discernible letters. The earliest examples found in hoards deposited in the 840s and 850s are of notably higher quality. The Norfolk find falls into the latter category.
It is worn, but you can see that the portrait bust captures Louis’ straight, long nose, laurel wreath, moustache and prominent chin. The inscription is also close to the original, reading “DNI HVVD [O] VS H IM AVG.” The reverse get even closer to the inscription: “C MVNVS DIVINVM IS.” The superfluous C and S are misinterpretations of the ties on the original coin’s wreath.
The coin has a double piercing above the head on the obverse, one larger perforation with a smaller one below it and slightly to the side. Those holes are at the four o’clock position on the reverse, which shows it was worn with the obverse side facing the viewer.
The coin pendant is currently going through the Treasure process but it’s a foregone conclusion because of its age and precious metal content. Once it is declared Treasure, the Norwich Castle Museum is hoping to acquire it.
A Roman lararium (a private altar dedicated to the household’s guardian gods, the Lares) from the 2nd century A.D. has been discovered in Cologne. It is the first lararium found north of the Alps.
Originally settled by the Germanic Ubii tribe, the Roman city was founded as Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium in around 50 A.D. by the Emperor Claudius. He granted it full city rights, privileging it because his wife, Agrippina the Younger, was born there. It became the capital of Germania Inferior and was one of the most important cities of the empire north of the Alps.

The remains survived due to a fluke of location. They were built on the slopes of the Rhine, and even in Roman times parts of the buildings were covered up by earth embankments to protect from flooding. Because of the soil backfilling, later construction went up above the structures instead of razing them first. Normally only the foundations of ancient buildings are found, but at this depth in this place, whole building structures were discovered.

While household altars were common in Roman homes all over the Empire, their remains do not typically survive north of the Alps because masonry preservation especially of private dwellings is so rare. To have found not just a lararium in Cologne but one in such good condition is of great archaeological importance.

The city plans to restore the lararium, remounting the altar slab, and will make it, the staircase and the apse part of the underground route of the new museum. The route also includes a medieval goldsmith’s workshop and remains of the city’s Jewish quarter.

Ivor Campbell and Jenny Snedden spotted the prints on Lunan Bay in Angus, eastern Scotland, after a strong storm in January. The storm had damaged the sandy dunes, exposing a layer of clay. The pair thought the markings on the wet ground looked like footprints, so they notified the Aberdeenshire council who enlisted the aid of University of Aberdeen archaeologist Kate Britton and her team to investigate the find.


“This is a real tangible link to the region’s past,” team member Professor Noble added. “The late Iron Age dates are in keeping with what we know about the rich archaeology of nearby Lunan Valley. It’s very exciting to think these prints were made by people around the time of the Roman invasions of Scotland and in the centuries leading up to the emergence of the Picts.”
Archaeologists say the unique find offers a window into human activity along the Angus coastline and the changing nature of the landscape.
Dr William Mills added: “It is incredibly rare to see such a delicate record saved, taking only minutes to create and hours to be destroyed, a snapshot of what people were doing thousands of years ago. The site also tells us how this now sandy beach was once a muddy estuary and that humans were using this environment, perhaps for hunting deer or to collect wild plant foods such as samphire.



The archaeological site of El Caño, 124 miles southwest of Panama City, was a ceremonial complex of the Coclé people. Previous discoveries of opulent burials have led to the area being dubbed “Panama’s Valley of the Kings,” and the vast majority of the necropolis has yet to be excavated.
The evidence accumulated in Tomb 3 allows for a revision of models regarding the emergence of complex chiefdoms in the isthmus, suggesting the existence of centralized societies that operated between the 8th and 11th centuries AD. These communities had the capacity to organize long-distance exchange networks and large-scale ceremonies, consolidating this site as one of the most important pre-Hispanic cemeteries in the region.

The panels date to the 13th and 14th centuries and depict courtly scenes of ladies, kings and knights, warfare, hunting and allegories of wisdom with images of books and philosophers. Courtly scenes include: a royal, bearded man with a crown and purple mantle with castle elements in the background; two crowned figures, one bearded, one youthful, flanked by ladies in headdresses; a man wearing a purple cloak with an ermine trim backed by courtiers wearing gloves and tunics.
Several of the people depicted in the panels are identifiable thanks to inscriptions and heraldry, among them: Jofré de Loaysa, royal notary, historian, diplomat, Archdeacon of Toledo, Gonzalo Pétrez, Archbishop of Toledo from 1280 to 1298 and owner of one of the greatest collection of codices of the period.

Philosophy and science are present on several panels. One depicts Plato and Aristotle being breastfed by Sophia, goddess of wisdom, surrounded by books. Another panel features what looks like a library with cabinets containing codices. Astronomy is represented in two tables, one in which the word is carved into an archway of a library; the other depicting a starry sky with an astrolabe on the table.

Now part of the collection of the Santa Cruz Museum of Toledo, the panels have traveled to Madrid where they are a thematic centerpiece of the What the City Hides: Images of the Medieval Court of Toledo exhibition. Other pieces from the royal court during the transition from the 13th to the 14th century are on display with the panels, including rare surviving wooden elements like a carved beam from the long-gone Toledo palace of the Dukes of Arjona and a whole section of decorated coffered ceiling from the royal chamber of King Alfonso XI in Cordoba.

The slipper dates to the late 17th century and is made from fine-grained leather in a deep red color and gold silk brocade. The leather lines the inner sole and the broad block heels. The silk upper is decorated with a floral pattern woven in a blue-green thread. The colors have faded over the centuries, and would originally have been bright yellow and green. It was stitched to the sole with white thread. These open-backed shoes (mules) were typically worn indoors.
Research suggests the slipper may have been left as a royal gift during King James II’s stay in Coventry. During his visit, he was honoured with a banquet at the Guildhall and lodged nearby in what later became Palace Yard, a site destroyed during the Coventry Blitz.
It was customary for royal guests to leave gifts, often embroidered gloves. In this case, a pair of silk slippers may have been given. Only one has surfaced to date.
There is no incontrovertible evidence of a royal provenance. The slipper previously belonged to costume collector Paulise de Bush who bequeathed her entire collection to the National Trust after her death in 1975. A museum tag from the de Bush collection references the James II Coventry history, but does not document when or where Pauline de Bush acquired the slipper. The Trust is currently researching the slipper’s history, hoping to confirm that it was worn by James II.
