Haul of ancient Roman artefacts found in London well stuns experts

[Neil]

By David Derbyshire - December 2007

Laden with delicacies such as stuffed dormice, peacock rissoles and sweet chestnuts, these plates and bowls would once have taken pride of place on a wealthy Roman's dining table.

Now, nearly 2,000 years later, the haul of 19 pieces of bronze tableware is offering a glimpse into life in the final days of Roman Britain.

The dishes were discovered during excavations at a building site in the City of London. The dig has unearthed more than 1,000 artefacts so far - and archaeologists are saying it is the most important in decades.

The finds include an entire Roman street, a wooden door built 60 years after the death of Jesus and the skull of a bear probably used to entertain citizens at the nearby amphitheatre.

But the most impressive discovery is the tableware, found at the bottom of an 8ft well. Historians believe the vessels were left there by some of the last Romans to quit the capital. One bowl had hooks to allow it to be displayed on the wall. Another could have been used for ablutions.
 
The find will be on display in the foyer of the Museum of London until 27 January
There are holes in the dishes which had been repaired with lead - suggesting they were in regular use.

The silted-up well they were found in is near Moorgate, a stone's throw from the Bank of England.

Coins also found in the well show it was built around 330AD and was out of use 50 years later.

 
The vessels were found during a nine-month dig by Pre-Construct Archaeology in London

The Romans quit London in 410AD.

During this period, the site would have been just inside the northern end of the defensive wall enclosing Londinium.
Jenny Hall, curator of Roman London at the Museum of London, where the finds have gone on display, said marshy conditions at the site preserved them perfectly.
"I just couldn't stop grinning when I first saw them," she said.
"Nothing like this has ever been found in London before, or anywhere else in Britain. You get the occasional one or two vessels, but not a group in this sort of condition."
 
Historians think the 1,600-year-old tableware may have been put in the well for safe-keeping by some of the last Roman Londoners to leave the city
At the time the dishes were left, Britain was being attacked from Scotland and Germany.

Mrs Hall said it was possible they were put in the well for safekeeping.
"The other possibility is they were put there as a ritual deposit to keep the spirit of the water on their side," she added.
"The Romans asked the gods before doing anything."

[Mungo]

a good insight ...............

[cardiffian]

Very interesting read.