The National Roman Legion Museum (
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
) ( cy, Amgueddfa Lleng Rufeinig Cymru) is a museum in
Caerleon
Caerleon (; cy, Caerllion) is a town and community in Newport, Wales. Situated on the River Usk, it lies northeast of Newport city centre, and southeast of Cwmbran. Caerleon is of archaeological importance, being the site of a notable Roman ...
, near
Newport, south-east
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
. It is one of three Roman sites in Caerleon, along with the
Baths museum and the open-air ruins of the
amphitheatre
An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...
and barracks. It is part of the wider network of
Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales
Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales, branded as simply Amgueddfa Cymru (formerly the National Museums and Galleries of Wales and legally National Museum of Wales), is a Welsh Government sponsored body that comprises seven museums in Wales:
* N ...
.
History
Roman Wales
The Roman era in the area of modern Wales began in 48 AD, with a military invasion by the imperial governor of Roman Britain. The conquest was completed by 78 AD, and Roman rule endured until the region was abandoned in 383 AD.
The Roman Emp ...
was the farthest point west that the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...
in
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the period in classical antiquity when large parts of the island of Great Britain were under occupation by the Roman Empire. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410. During that time, the territory conquered was ...
extended to, and as a defence point the fortress at
Isca Augusta
Isca, variously specified as Isca Augusta or Isca Silurum, was the site of a Roman legionary fortress and settlement or ''vicus'', the remains of which lie beneath parts of the present-day suburban village of Caerleon in the north of the city of ...
, now Caerleon, built in 75 AD, was one of only three permanent
Roman Legion
The Roman legion ( la, legiō, ) was the largest military unit of the Roman army, composed of 5,200 infantry and 300 equites (cavalry) in the period of the Roman Republic (509 BC–27 BC) and of 5,600 infantry and 200 auxilia in the period of ...
ary fortresses in
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the period in classical antiquity when large parts of the island of Great Britain were under occupation by the Roman Empire. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410. During that time, the territory conquered was ...
. It was occupied and operational for just over 200 years.
The National Roman Legion Museum lies inside what remains of the fortress, and contains many
artefacts from the period of
Isca Augusta
Isca, variously specified as Isca Augusta or Isca Silurum, was the site of a Roman legionary fortress and settlement or ''vicus'', the remains of which lie beneath parts of the present-day suburban village of Caerleon in the north of the city of ...
of
Legio II Augusta
Legio II Augusta ( Second Legion "Augustus'") was a legion of the Imperial Roman army that was founded during the late Roman republic. Its emblems were the Capricornus, Pegasus, and Mars. It may have taken the name "''Augusta''" from a victory or ...
from
Roman currency
Roman currency for most of Roman history consisted of gold, silver, bronze, orichalcum and copper coinage. From its introduction to the Republic, during the third century BC, well into Imperial times, Roman currency saw many changes in form, denomi ...
to uniforms.
A short walk from the National Roman Legion Museum is the remains of Isca Augusta:
* Part of the military bath house in the
Roman Baths Museum
The Caerleon Roman Fortress and Baths museum ( cy, Caer a Baddonau Rhufeinig Caerllion Amgueddfa) is a historical site located in the town of Caerleon, South Wales. Near to the city of Newport, it is run by the Welsh historic environment serv ...
* The most complete Roman
amphitheatre
An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...
in Britain
* Sections of the fortress walls
* The only remains of a
Roman legionary
The Roman legionary (in Latin ''legionarius'', plural ''legionarii'') was a professional heavy infantryman of the Roman army after the Marian reforms. These soldiers would conquer and defend the territories of ancient Rome during the late Republi ...
barracks
Barracks are usually a group of long buildings built to house military personnel or laborers. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word "barraca" ("soldier's tent"), but today barracks are u ...
on view anywhere in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
at Prysg Field
Museum
![Antiquarian Museum, Caerleon](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/Antiquarian_Museum%2C_Caerleon.jpeg)
The museum is located in the centre of Roman Isca, on what was the ''via principalis'' leading to
the amphitheatre
The Amphitheatre () is a large bowl-shaped depression, 0.75 nautical miles (1.4 km) in diameter, at the south side of the head of Northeast Glacier on Graham Land in Antarctica. The feature lies adjacent to former bases of the British Graham ...
.
The first museum building was the Antiquarian Museum of 1850. This was built to a design by
H.F Lockwood of
Hull, a simple box-shaped building of
Bath stone
Bath Stone is an oolitic limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate. Originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England. Its honey colouring gives the World Heritage City of ...
. Its only architectural feature of note was the pillared
portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...
in the Greek
Doric Doric may refer to:
* Doric, of or relating to the Dorians of ancient Greece
** Doric Greek, the dialects of the Dorians
* Doric order, a style of ancient Greek architecture
* Doric mode, a synonym of Dorian mode
* Doric dialect (Scotland)
* Doric ...
style. Little is known of the original building but it is known to have re-used ship's timbers in its roof and stone details from the Old Market House of Caerleon which had been demolished shortly before. It is often claimed that the timbers are from , although this ship was in service at the time and had no obvious connection to Newport.
The museum building was
Grade II listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
in 1951, but was largely demolished during the 1987 rebuilding and enlargement of the museum.
Only the portico now remains. The new building is in a modernist style, but equally featureless and windowless as the original.
As of February 2019, the site is being redeveloped and is closed to the public until autumn 2019. It will continue to offer facilities for local schools.
See also
*
Newport Museum
Newport Museum and Art Gallery ( cy, Amgueddfa ac Oriel Gelf Casnewydd) (known locally as the City Museum ( cy, Amgueddfa Dinas)) is a museum, library and art gallery in the city of Newport, South Wales. It is located in Newport city centre on ...
*
Venta Silurum
Venta Silurum was a town in the Roman province of ''Britannia'' or Britain. Today it consists of remains in the village of Caerwent in Monmouthshire, south east Wales. Much of it has been archaeologically excavated and is on display to the publ ...
References
External links
Official website – National Roman Legion MuseumSix pages of artifacts held within the museum and relating to Roman Caerleon at Gathering the Jewels
{{authority control
National museums of Wales
Culture in Newport, Wales
History of Newport, Wales
Organisations based in Newport, Wales
Museums in Newport, Wales
Landmarks in Newport, Wales
Museums of ancient Rome in Wales
Military and war museums in Wales
Archaeological museums in Wales
Caerleon
Grade II listed buildings in Newport, Wales