Roman Antiquities
Carvoran - Roman Army Museum - 26
number denotes miles from Bellingham
It
is an excellent place to find out all about the Roman Army. Learn about the different
sub-divisions of a legion, the military ranks, soldiers' duties, their armour and
weapons.
More a museum of living reconstructions than excavated artifacts, there are excellent
tableaux showing Roman arms and armour in great detail, along with explanatory videos
and a model of the nearby fort.
Vindolanda - 21
Vindolanda
was once a Roman frontier military and civilian site on the Stanegate line of defences.
Substantial remains are visible and on display are rare and fascinating objects
from the past, including Roman boots and shoes, jewellery, tools, locks and textiles.
The Open Air Museum has full sized replicas of a Roman Temple, a Roman shop, a Roman house, as well as a Northumbrian croft, all set in relaxing gardens.
Housesteads Roman Fort - 16
This
is one of the largest forts on Hadrian's Wall and well worth a visit.
At the centre are the most important buildings: the commanding officer’s house, headquarters building and hospital.
Chesters Roman Fort - 12
First
built around 122-123AD, the fort was built to hold a Calvary of 512 men and their
horses, and maintained its purpose for about 300 years.
The most interesting feature of the fort is the headquarters building. It
measures 125 x 90 feet overall. The entrance, on the north side leads into the first
part of thel headquarters, the open courtyard with surrounding colonnade.
Some of the original paving of the courtyard is still in position, a section in
the north-west corner having a gutter or channel cut into it to carry away the run-off
of rain from the colonnade roof.
The bath house is one of the features of why the fort is so famous. The bath-house was for all military personnel without regard for rank. Like roman baths, the bath-house was used for other things than just bathing such as drinking, gaming and eating. It had a cold rooms, warm rooms, and hot rooms.
Corbridge - Roman Site - 17
Corbridge
Roman Site predates Hadrian's Wall, and was situated at the important crossroads
of northbound Dere Street and the Stanegate running east to west along the Tyne
valley.
The museum, built in the style of a Roman building, houses finds from the site, including the famous stone fountainhead - the Lion of Corbridge, and jewellery, ornaments and other domestic artifacts not so prevalent at the military sites on the Wall. Displays show the extent of the Roman conquest of Britain, and the expansion of the site over the years.
Information courtesy of cycleroutes.org.