Charterhouse Roman Town

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Charterhouse Roman Town was a town in the Roman province of Britannia. Its Latin name may have been Iscalis, but this is far from certain[1]. Its site is located just to the west of the village of Charterhouse-on-Mendip in the English county of Somerset.

Roman lead mines at Charterhouse, Somerset
Roman lead mines at Charterhouse, Somerset

The roman landscape has been designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.[2]

Contents

[edit] Mining settlement

The settlement grew up around the north-western edge of prehistoric lead and silver mines, which were exploited by the Romans. Mendip lead ore had up to 0.4% silver content, which the Romans used to pay the army[3]. Extraction is thought to have begun as early as AD 49 (although the evidence of dateable lead ingots found in the neighbourhood has recently been questioned[4]). At first the lead and silver industries were tightly controlled by the Roman military (in the south-west, by the Second Legion[5]) and there was a small 'fortlet' adjoining the mines during the 1st century, which may, however, have been little more than a fortified compound for storing lead pigs[6]. After a short time, the extraction of these metals was contracted out to civilian companies, probably because of low silver content[7]. Smelting was undertaken on site where industrial workshops have been excavated[8], and the metal exported along a minor road to the Fosse Way, and probably through a small inland port at nearby Cheddar[5].

[edit] Amphitheatre

An amphitheatre stood west of the settlement. It is the only one in England to exist at a lead mine and is additional evidence of the importance of Mendip lead to the Romans.[9] It measures 32m x 24.4m and the banks for the seating survive 4.5m above the arena. It was surveyed in 1909. It was probably a place of entertainment for the soldiers at the Roman fort which was established here.[10]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Rivet, A L F; Smith, Colin (1979). The Place-Names of Roman Britain. London: B T Batsford. 
  2. ^ Firth, Hannah (2007). Mendip from the air. Taunton: Somerset County Council. ISBN 9780861833900. 
  3. ^ Elkington, H D H (1976). "The Mendip Lead Industry". The Roman West Country: Classical Culture and Celtic Society. 
  4. ^ Clement Whittick, G (1982). "Roman Lead-Mining on Mendip and in North Wales". Britannia 13. 
  5. ^ a b Aston, Mick; Burrow, Ian (1982). The Archaeology of Somerset. Taunton: Somerset County Council. 
  6. ^ De la Bedoyere, Guy (2006). Roman Britain: A New History. London: Thames & Hudson. 
  7. ^ Major Romano-British Settlement Charterhouse on Mendip, Avon. Roman Britain.org. Retrieved on 2006-10-28.
  8. ^ Charterhouse. Big Roman Dig. Retrieved on 2006-10-28.
  9. ^ Dunning, Robert (1983). A History of Somerset. Chichester: Phillimore & Co. ISBN 978-0-85033-461-6. 
  10. ^ Adkins, Lesley and Roy (1992). A field Guide to Somerset Archeology. Stanbridge: Dovecote press. ISBN 0946159947. 
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