WORDS written decades before Hadrian’s Wall was built have been unveiled for the first time.

Four letters, written on wafer-thin wooden writing tablets at Vindolanda, give a fascinating insight into the daily life of Julius Verecundus, prefect of the First Cohort of Tungrians, who lived more than 1,900 years ago at the fort.

The tablets were unearthed at the site in 2017, but it has taken two years of careful, painstaking research by a team of experts to uncover their secrets.

Dr Roger Tomlin, one of the team of specialists who have analysed the text, described the contents of the letters.

He said: “Deciphering Julius Verecundus’s letters has been a privilege.

“More than 19 centuries later, to be looking over the colonel’s shoulder as he deals with his correspondence – his vegetables and plant-cuttings, the wrong key, the missing knife, the pompous attempt by a fellow colonel to get one of his sergeants into trouble – how lucky we have been.”

While the tablets do not contain any sensational statements or revelations, their contents are remarkable because of their depiction of everyday life – from outbursts of anger at work to delivery arrangements for supplies to the Empire’s frontier.

Dr Andrew Birley, CEO of the Vindolanda Trust commented “Writing tablets are not abstract things. They easily cross the great distance of time and cultures.

“The thing which stands out, apart from the sheer variety and detail, is the humanity of the people writing them. It is this humanity which allows us to really enjoy, marvel and understand the people of the letters. They are, in that way, utterly amazing.”

The tablets will go on display at Vindolanda in spring 2020, thanks to the long-standing relationship between the Vindolanda Trust and the British Museum.

An article on the first four letters in the academic journal Britannia is due to be published this month.