Scheduled Monument: Roman Quarry Including Edgar's Cave and the Rock-Cut Figure of Minerva on Edgar's Field, 150m South West of Dee Bridge (1014718)

EXTRACT FROM ENGLISH HERITAGE'S RECORD OF SCHEDULED MONUMENTS MONUMENT: Roman quarry including Edgar's Cave and the rock-cut figure of Minerva on Edgar's Field, 150m south west of Dee Bridge PARISH: CHESTER DISTRICT: CHESTER COUNTY: CHESHIRE NATIONAL MONUMENT NO: 27582 NATIONAL GRID REFERENCE(S): SJ40676560 DESCRIPTION OF THE MONUMENT The monument includes a Roman quarry face on which is carved a figure of the Roman goddess Minerva. A cave is cut into the rock face behind the figure and forms a shrine for votive offerings. This is known as Edgar's Cave. The rock outcrop bearing the carving and cave are now surrounded by a park with a childrens' playground in the centre and the grass around the monument is cut as a lawn. An area of the floor of the quarry is also included. The relief sculpted figure, which is also Listed Grade II, stands 1.45m high and 0.73m wide. It has been enclosed by a sandstone frame which originally held a steel gate across the front of the sculpture to protect it from vandalism. To the right of the frame, the cave is cut into the rock face; to the left it is built up with freestone to support it from behind. The entrance to the cave is now closed with a steel grill. The top of the rock face has been capped with stone setts. The exposed rock face is part of a more extensive quarry which curves around the ground known as Edgar's Field forming a slope with two terraces on the southern and western sides. Excavations in the early 1920s revealed that the quarry was in use c.100 AD. Soil was imported to cover the quarry floor in the late-second century AD. Roman occupation remains dating from that time on were found on the site. Subsequently stone was quarried from the site again during the Middle Ages. The sculpted shrine and figure of the goddess would appear to have been carved during the working of the quarry. It may have been adopted as a Christian shrine in later centuries which would account for the remarkable preservation of the figure and its surround. The shrine has a signboard on wooden uprights to the left of the frame. The signboard and its uprights are excluded from the scheduling but the ground beneath them is included. ASSESSMENT OF IMPORTANCE The Roman conquest of Britain brought a significant increase in the requirement for building stone and generated the first major quarrying industry to be developed in England. Quarries were opened and exploited from soon after the conquest to the end of the Roman period in the fifth century. The majority were used for a very limited period of time and met the requirements for building stone within their immediate areas. A few, including the Purbeck marble quarries, produced very high quality building stone which was transported for use over a wide area. Many were under military control to produce stone for forts or defence works such as Hadrian's Wall. Others were under the control of town authorities. In some instances they may also have been privately owned. Most provided building stone, but a few were used for more specific purposes to produce quern or mill stones. Quarrying techniques were relatively simple and involved the use of wedges, separation trenches and percussion to split lumps of rock from the parent material. Irregular blocks of stone were usually dressed to shape before being transported from the quarries. Tracks and pathways enabling the removal of stone from the quarry would also have existed. Visible remains include working faces, waste heaps and dressing floors. Today, however, very few Roman quarries can be positively identified because reuse in later times has removed much evidence for Roman activity, whilst the continued use of similar quarrying techniques over long periods often makes it impossible to determine the exact date of surviving remains. Most of the quarries which are considered to be Roman are dated on the basis of surviving inscriptions or carvings, usually on the worked face. Fewer than 50 quarries have been confirmed to retain evidence for Roman activity. In view of their rarity and the insights they provide into Roman technology and building works, all surviving examples will be identified to be nationally important. The Roman quarry and shrine in Edgar's field is a unique survival in the British Isles. The quarry has been securely dated by an archaeological excavation to an early period of the Roman occupation coincident with the building in stone of the legionary fortress at Chester and the shrine is unusual in having survived the arrival of Christianity and later quarrying in the area. SCHEDULING HISTORY Monument included in the Schedule on 13th December 1929 as: COUNTY/NUMBER: Cheshire 13 NAME: Edgar's Cave and figure of Minerva The reference of this monument is now: NATIONAL MONUMENT NUMBER: 27582 NAME: Roman quarry including Edgar's Cave and the rock-cut figure of Minerva on Edgar's Field, 150m south west of Dee Bridge SCHEDULING REVISED ON 19th September 1996