Londinium, Architecture and the CraftsLethaby, W. R. (William Richard)
History
Londinium, Architecture and the Crafts
Lethaby, W. R. (William Richard)
England -- Antiquities, Roman; London (England) -- Antiquities, Roman; Romans -- England -- London
The discovery was announced in January 1922 of a wall 2¾ ft. thick of
ragstone and bond tiles “in the centre of Gracechurch Street a little
south of the Cornhill crossing (to the west or left of Fig. 22). A
length of about 10 ft. has been disclosed following the central line of
Gracechurch Street. The presence of this Roman building in the middle of
the highway proves that the mediæval street did not follow the line of
the Roman street. Close at hand is Leadenhall. When the present market
was reconstructed, excavations disclosed remains of an important Roman
building. It is probable that the remains now unearthed are associated
with the same group of buildings.” Another wall, 4½ ft. thick, was found
at right angles to the thinner wall; the finds were at a depth of about
13 ft. This building, which must have been part of the Basilica or
adjacent to it and square with it, was thus as far west as the middle of
the street, and doubtless farther, for the thinner wall in association
with a thicker one would not have been an external wall. Other walls
have recently been found under St. Peter’s, Cornhill, corresponding with
those under Leadenhall Market. “All these finds seem to be part of a
great building more than 400 ft. long, which crowned the eastern hill of
London” (_Antiquaries’ Journal_, vol. ii. p. 260; see also p. 225,
below).
The smaller inset plan on Fig. 22 is a very visionary reading of the
possibilities. A street in line with Fish Street Hill and the Bridge,
which I will call _Axis Street_, may not have pointed to the centre of
this great building, but rather by its west end as suggested (X). If
this is too far west for the _Axis Street_, then we must suppose that it
was directed towards some point in the south front of the Forum. (It is
desirable that all the walls found in this locality should be accurately
laid down on a plan.) A parallel street to the east, which I will call
_North Gate Street_ (Y), would not be in continuation with _Axis
Street_. The question whether Bishopsgate and Gracechurch Street
represent a Roman street from the Bridge to the Gate has been much
argued over (see _Archæologia_, 1906), and it seems to have been shown
that the line was interrupted in some way. The southern part, however,
must, I think, represent the Roman street from the Bridge, although it
may later have been bent aside to tend more directly to Bishopsgate. The
facts and the fault in the line may be reconciled in some such way as
suggested. (Hodge’s drawings are in the old Gardner collection, and it
would be interesting to know what other Roman records are included.)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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