Archaeologists will begin excavating one of the most intriguing areas of a Roman town in Norfolk next week (13 August).
Caistor Roman Town was established in the AD70s and was the largest Roman town in East Anglia. It was once the territory of the Iceni tribe and the warrior Queen Boudica, who famously rebelled against Roman rule in AD 60/61. It is also one of only three "greenfield" Roman regional capitals in Britain that were not succeeded by medieval and modern towns.
Caistor initially came to public attention in 1929, when an aerial photograph, taken during a dry summer, revealed its streets and buildings in a famer's field. Since 2006, archaeologists from the University of Nottingham have been carrying out excavations, in collaboration with the Norfolk Archaeological Trust (the site owners) and the Caistor Roman Project community archaeology group. Although it is one of the country's most important Roman archaeological sites, many aspects of its history are still unknown.
This year, archaeologists will investigate a new area that hasn't been accessed since the 1920s. The area lies within the grounds of Caistor Hall Hotel, outside of the walled site that visitors can visit. This is because, when it was first founded, the Roman town was much bigger than it appears today, surrounded not by walls but by a huge circuit of ditches with a perimeter of 2.4 km enclosing an area of 35 hectares. When the hotel grounds were excavated one hundred years ago, archaeologists discovered some of the earliest Roman finds to date, including evidence of metal working, dating to shortly after the Roman conquest (perhaps while the area was still under the rule of the Iceni). This year, thanks to the support of Brasteds and the Caistor Hall Hotel, archaeologists will finally return to the area again for further investigations.
It's a wonderful opportunity to shed light on one of the least understood areas of the Roman town and to further extend our knowledge of the earliest development of the town.
We're delighted that our team, drawn from the community and advised by professionals, will be working together on further extending our knowledge of the town and its environs. And we are looking forward to your visit!
Working with the Caistor Roman Project volunteers this year will be students from the Universities of Nottingham and East Anglia. They'll also be joined by group of service veterans who will be using archaeology as a means of therapy to promote wellbeing.
Members of the public will be able to visit the dig from Wednesday 16 August through to Saturday 19 August in the first week, and Monday 21 August through to Thursday 24 August in the second week. There will be one tour per day, starting at 2.00 p.m. Admission is free, but all intending visitors must sign up with Eventbrite and they must bring proof of booking with them.
