City of the Dead: Calleva Atrebatum

Page 5 of 8

• 1. The lost town
• 2. Celtic roots
• 3. Our introduction to Calleva
• 4. Early excavations
• 5. Immigrants from France?
• 6. The Roman town
• 7. 6th-century abondonment
• 8. Find out more
• Print entire article

Immigrants from France?

The first glimpse of the early settlement, dating perhaps from about 25BC, was gained from excavations in the 1980s on the site of the basilica, the great public hall that occupied one side of the Roman forum. Digging down below the Roman floor, evidence was recorded of two periods of Roman timber building dating to the first century AD.

Beneath all these was the late Iron Age settlement, with evidence of some regular planning, the traces of circular and rectangular timber buildings, abundant evidence of metalworking - including of precious metals - and plentiful evidence of local and long-distance contacts.

'Quantities of oysters...and containers of wine, olive oil and fish sauce...pointed to a highly Romanised community.'

Many elements of this early settlement were different from what is found in contemporary settlements in southern England, including evidence for diet. Quantities of oysters, on the one hand, and containers of wine, olive oil and fish sauce, on the other, pointed to a highly Romanised community. The character of what was found pointed strongly to the settlers originating from continental Europe, probably from northern France.

They were a powerful group, and the evidence of coins that can be associated with Calleva and give us the names of some of the leaders - Tincomarus, Eppillus, Verica - argues that it was the centre of a powerful tribe called the Atrebates, whose territory extended over much of southern England.

NextPrevious