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This paper presents preliminary research into the social and economic impact of early urban settlement in Britain, focusing on the case-study area of Late Iron Age to Roman Essex. Through fresh analysis of ceramic assemblages from Colchester and Heybridge, we describe hitherto unrecognised socio-cultural groupings and identities through subtle differences in the deposition of pottery in the generations before and after conquest. The concluding discussion concentrates on problems that we still have to address in describing the economic basis of early urban society in Britain.

This paper considers the role of pottery in the Late Iron Age to Roman transition in south-east Britain. Traditional concern with the significance of Continental imports is rejected in favour of a more holistic and bottom-up approach giving equal emphasis to locally made forms and imports in complete assemblages. Several stages of inter-site correspondence analysis are conducted on a range of sites and assemblages in the region. Patterning pertaining to the use and deposition of both imported and local pottery vessels can be seen to contradict simplistic models for 'Romanization before conquest'. The main conclusions include evidence for the selective disposal of drinking vessels and table wares in pits, the likely widespread consumption of beer as opposed to wine, and the implied importance of indigenous social practices such as feasting and communal drinking.