A wealth of history at ‘significant’ Roman site
WHAT is being described as one of the most significant Roman archaeological digs in its history is under way in Carmarthen.
On the site of a former car dealership, a stone’s throw away from Carmarthen Town Football Club in Priory Street, experts believe they have uncovered what was once the centre of Roman Carmarthen, its ‘forum basilica’.
This would have included a civic building and square.
Having spent six weeks digging down to just over three feet in depth, a team from Archaeology Wales are painstakingly documenting and discovering an array of history at their fingertips.
From pottery, coins, glass that would have been for drinking vessels, and nails used in timber frameworks and foundations of the Roman buildings, it’s been a fruitful task unearthing the past so far on the site.
A small bronze statue head, believed to be that of Roman god Apollo, has also been uncovered but needs extensive cleaning and analysis. The site will eventually be used for flats and homes, but for now it’s proving to be a treasure trove of riches for those in the know.
Looking down into a trench, team member Jerry Bond is holding aloft a small bowl-like cup.
He explains: “This clay cup, which I think would have been for drinking from, is completely intact.
“It has lost its terracotta-like colour due to being burnt, but that’s how it has survived.
“It’s incredible and a once-in-acareer find.”
The inside of the cup is emblazoned with a flower, which was a way Roman potters branded their work.
Some used words and others symbols.
Jerry added that they have removed “bucket loads” of pottery shards amounting to upward of 2,000 fragments so far.
The day I arrived he had been scraping and brushing around a piece of pottery, which had yet to be gently coaxed from the earth and appeared to show two people entwined in a sex act.
“Some things never change,” exclaims Jerry with a chuckle.
Project manager Phillip Poucher said: “This is a significant dig for Wales, not just Carmarthen.
“We knew we would find artefacts here but the amount and the fact we have dug down to the footings of Roman buildings suggests this was a busy part of the town, its centre really.
“The buildings here would have been a mixture of timber and stone and also a mix of businesses and residential.”
Phillip explained: “Everything will be documented and items we find are being sent for examination.
“Ultimately we want them to be on show at the Carmarthenshire County Museum in Abergwili.”