Eboracum recognise that the Multangular Tower was Roman in date in a 1683 paper with the Royal Society. John Horsley's 1732 "Britannia Romana", or 'The Roman Antiquities of Britain', included a chapter on Roman York and at least partly informed Francis Drake's 1736 "Eboracum" – the first book of its kind on Roman York. Drake also published accounts in the "Philosophical Transactions" of the Royal Society. The Rev. Charles Wellbeloved was one of the founders of the Yorkshire Philosophical Society and a curator of the antiquities in the Yorkshire Museum until his death in 1858. He published a systematic account of
Eboracum years. Estimates suggest that over 48,000m of stone were required, largely consisting of Magnesian Limestone from the quarries nearby the Roman settlement of Calcaria (Tadcaster). There is evidence that the Emperor Hadrian visited in 122 on his way north to plan his great walled frontier. He certainly brought with him the Sixth Legion to replace the existing garrison. Emperor Septimius Severus visited Eboracum in 208 and made it his base for campaigning in Scotland. (The fortress wall was probably reconstructed during his stay and at the east angle it is possible to see this work standing almost to full height.)