The Lusitania Riots in Pietermaritzburg 13–14 May 1915

During the Great War the sinking of the British liner Lusitania by a German submarine off the Irish coast on 7 May 1915, with the loss of 1198 lives, evoked a strong popular reaction throughout the English-peaking world, and included violent outbursts against Germans in many urban centres of the British Empire. In South Africa these riots resulted in great damage to property and pressure on the Union government to enforce harsh restrictions on enemy subjects and businesses. This is an account of the riots and their consequences in Pietermaritzburg, Natal, one of the most ‘British’ of South African cities.     

A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Study of Archaeological Mortars from the Town of Ammaia in the Roman Province of Lusitania (Portugal)

The Roman town of Ammaia (in Marvão Region) is considered one of the most important recent findings of the Roman presence in Portuguese territory. It was settled in Republican times and abandoned in the seventh century. In this research, 17 masonry mortars and renders from the West Tower (South Gate), the residential area near the West Tower, the macellum, the peristylium, the public bath building, the podium of the temple and the portico of the forum were analysed. The methodology of chemical, mineralogical and microstructural characterization has involved several complementary techniques, including stereomicroscopy, X‐ray diffraction, thermal analysis and scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy. The results indicate that the mortars from the beginning of the town's edification were mainly composed of soil (clays). Later, during the main Roman building period, mortars were composed using a calcitic binder and the mortar composition varied according to their use and function. The samples from a period subsequent to the Roman occupation are based on a dolomitic binder. From the present study, relevant information has been acquired about the technological evolution of Roman construction in Ammaia, the historical context of the archaeological structures and guidelines for the conservation and restoration of mortars.     

Geochemical signatures of Roman amphorae produced in the Sado River estuary,Lusitania (Western Portugal)

Several archaeological sites located in the Sado estuary, Lusitania province (Western Portugal), show evidence of an important amphorae production, mainly related to the Roman Tróia industrial centre of fish preserves. The chemical analysis of amphorae sherds found in Barrosinha, Bugio, Zambujalinho, Xarrouqueira and Vale da Cepa (Lower Sado) was performed by instrumental neutron activation analysis, and the mineralogical composition obtained by X-ray diffraction. The chemical results were compared with amphorae from the Herdade do Pinheiro production centre, also located in the Sado estuary. Application of several exploratory and discriminant techniques of multivariate statistical analysis using chemical data of Lower Sado amphorae allowed the characterization and differentiation of two reference groups, named Sado 1 and Sado 2. The geochemical patterns and the mineralogical composition of these groups indicate the use of two different raw materials, the selection of which appears to have been based on the proximity factor of the kilns. The amphorae produced in the Sado basin were differentiated from amphorae from the Gualdalquivir estuary (Villa Nueva, Cádiz, Spain) in Baetica province.