Supra Lemanem 3 (2024) – evidence of pre-Roman use and a unique oil lamp
The 2024 season saw a return to the same site as 2023 to discover more about the tantalising glimpses revealed. The site of the wall was re-excavated and more artefacts, including a knife, were discovered. Much attention was paid to trying to discover the line of the wall along the field edge and establishing its width as 1.9m, a standard Roman measure. A lime kiln, 4.5m in diameter, was found, built into the interior of the wall. Whether it is Roman or a later feature is still to be determined. The area close to the wall had been much disturbed by later activities, including fencing and a possible 2nd World War cable. However, among the scattered remains, a hoard of coins was discovered; and outside the wall a unique copper-alloy oil lamp in the shape of a foot.
The only copper-alloy oil lamp in the shape of a foot to be excavated in Britain
Other trenches revealed a coin of the pre-Roman Cantiaci tribe and external defensive features along another section of what is assumed to be a late Roman fort.
a coin of the pre-Roman Cantiaci tribe
The dig provided more evidence of this previously unexplored Roman site, but has left many more questions than answers, to be investigated in the coming years.