Chester Town Hall (Chester)

 Roman Empire, amphitheatre, interesting place, town hall

Chester was a Roman city with an amphitheatre.

Roman Chester - The Newstead Gallery
The Newstead Roman Gallery was opened in 1952. It is named after Professor Robert Newstead, the first curator of the museum. The gallery tells the story of the Romans in Chester including the Roman legion and its fortress, coinage, pottery, glass, religion, trade and everyday life. Dr. Graham Webster, who created the original gallery, opened the current displays in 1987.

Guarding the entrance to the gallery is a life size model of a Roman legionary of about AD 60 which shows how they dressed.


Two highlights of the gallery are the military diplomas and the collection of lead waterpipes and ingots found in or near Chester.

Military diplomas were given to auxillary soldiers who had served in the army for 25 years. The diplomas were inscribed on bronze tablets. They gave Roman citizenship to the men and their children and made their marriages legal. Only 13 diplomas have been found in Britain. The most complete was found in Malpas, Cheshire in 1821. It is dated 19th January AD 104 and was made out to horsemen and foot soldiers serving under Lucius Neratius Marcellus, Governor of Britain.

Lead ores were very important to the Romans not only for the lead but also for the silver found in the ore. The lead was mined from the Clwyd Hills. One of the lead pipes on display was made in AD 79.

A model of the principia shows the headquarters building inside the fortress. It contained a large courtyard surrounded by offices and stores. You can only see a few traces of this great Roman building today. St. Peter's Church at the City Cross now stands on the site of the entrance to the principia.