Archaeologists excavating the Roman fort of Vindolanda in Northumberland have uncovered a rare sandstone relief depicting a Roman Genius—a protective guardian spirit—after it lay buried beneath the floor of a fourth-century barrack building for more than 1,600 years.
The sculpture was discovered on 16 June during the 2026 excavation season by Dr Andrew Birley, Director of Excavations at the Vindolanda Trust, while investigating an unusually rounded flagstone within a late Roman barrack block.
After carefully lifting the stone, Birley found a finely carved relief preserved in remarkable condition, having remained concealed since it was deliberately buried during the site’s final phases of Roman occupation.
The relief is believed to have originally formed part of a domestic shrine, where it represented a Genius—the protective spirit of a household or place in Roman religion. Such spirits were venerated throughout the Roman world and were believed to bring prosperity, security and good fortune.
The carving depicts the guardian spirit holding a cornucopia, symbolising abundance, in one hand, and a patera, a shallow dish used in ritual offerings, in the other.
Following the discovery, photographs of the sculpture were circulated to specialists, including Lindsay Allason-Jones, Dr Fraser Hunter and Alex Rome-Griffin, who independently identified the figure as a previously unknown representation of a Roman Genius.
“I have been fortunate enough to have worked at the site for many years and made some wonderful discoveries along the way, but I was completely unprepared for what I found on the other side of this stone,” said Dr Birley. “It was an extraordinary moment.”
The discovery also marks a notable milestone for the Birley family, whose association with Vindolanda spans three generations. Andrew Birley’s grandfather, Professor Eric Birley, established excavations at the site in the 1930s, while his father, Robin Birley, played a pivotal role in transforming understanding of the fort through decades of archaeological research.
Although inscriptions dedicated to a Genius are relatively common across Roman Britain, surviving carved stone reliefs are considerably rarer. Archaeologists believe the sculpture was carved locally, either by a mason working at Vindolanda or by a sculptor from a regional workshop, possibly associated with the Roman fort at Lanchester in County Durham.
The relief was found beneath the floor of a fourth-century barrack building, where archaeologists believe it had been reused as building material after originally serving as part of a household shrine. Its secure archaeological context and exceptional state of preservation provide valuable evidence for religious beliefs among the soldiers and civilian communities who occupied Vindolanda during the closing centuries of Roman Britain.
Dr Birley described the find as one of the most memorable moments of his career.
“Once we knew who we had found, it somehow felt entirely appropriate. It was almost as though Vindolanda itself had reached out to the team and quietly said, ‘We approve of what you are doing.’ As archaeologists, moments like these are incredibly rare.”
The sandstone relief is 44 centimetres high, 23 centimetres wide and 8 centimetres deep. It is currently undergoing conservation and detailed study before being exhibited at the Vindolanda Museum.
Vindolanda is one of Europe’s most important Roman archaeological sites located just south of Hadrian’s Wall. Occupied from the late first century AD until the early fifth century, the fort has provided the world’s best examples of writing tablets, leather shoes, textiles and thousands of everyday artefacts that have influenced the very history of Rome’s northern border.
Sources : Vindolanda Trust
