Monument record 8494 - Roman east-west alley between barracks and centurion's house at the Northgate Brewery

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Summary

Traces of an alley was recorded to the south of the centurion’s house between it and the adjacent barracks block during archaeological investigations at the Northgate Brewery site between 1974-77. Legionary barrack blocks each accommodated a century of 80 men plus their officers, and were normally arranged in groups of 6 (a cohort of 480 men). Narrow streets gave access to facing pairs of barracks. The centurions' quarters were situated at the ends of the barracks, adjacent to a major road - either the perimeter road (via sagularis) or main transverse street (via principalis). The centurions' quarters were divided from those of the rank-and-file by a narrow alley. They were wider than the men's quarters but lacked a veranda. In ground plan they consisted of a corridor with rooms (including a private latrine) opening off on each side.

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Type and Period (1)

ALLEY (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Full Description

Traces of an east-west aligned alley was recorded to the south of the centurion’s house (CHER 8373) between it and the adjacent barracks block (CHER 8374) during archaeological investigations at the Northgate Brewery site between 1974-77. (2)

The northern end of trench 4 recorded traces of two deposits, the lower comprising compacted sandstone fragments overlain by a deposit of green clay containing fragments of broken sandstone and tile forming the surface of an alley. The alley was subsequently walled up sometime in the late Roman period and the space apportioned to the centurion’s house. (2)

<1> Davey, P. J., 1973, Chester Northgate Brewery Phase One, p6-8 (Monograph). SCH950.

<2> Strickland T.J & Ward, S.W., 1978, Excavations at Chester Northgate Brewery 1974-5: A Roman Centurion's Quarters and Barrack (Excavation & survey reports) (Monograph). SCH1208.

<3> Strickland, T.J., 1980, First century Deva: some evidence reconsidered in the light of recent archaeological discoveries (Article in Journal). SCH5923.

<4> Harris, B.E. (ed), 1987, Victoria County History - A History of the County of Chester: Volume I, p151-2,157,163 (Book). SCH3556.

<5> Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies, 1911-Present, Journal of Roman Studies, Vol 40 p97-98 (Journal/Periodical). SCH1519.

<6> Anon, 1974, September 1974: North West Newsletter. Excavations (Article in Journal). SCH5742.

<7> Anon, 1975, March 1975: North West Newsletter. Excavations (Article in Journal). SCH5746.

<8> Anon, 1973, March 1973: North West Newsletter. Excavations (Article in Journal). SCH5739.

<9> Anon, 1973, September 1973: North West Newsletter. Excavations (Article in Journal). SCH6497.

<10> Lloyd-Morgan G., 1977, Mirrors in Roman Chester (Article in Journal). SCH5915.

<11> Grosvenor Museum Excavations Newsletter, 1972, Northgate Brewery Excavations summary (Newsletter). SCH6225.

<12> Grosvenor Museum Excavations Newsletter, 1974, Summary of Excavations in Chester (Newsletter). SCH6233.

<13> Grosvenor Museum Excavations Newsletter, 1974, Summary of Excavations in Chester (Newsletter). SCH6234.

Sources/Archives (13)

<1> SCH950 Monograph: Davey, P. J.. 1973. Chester Northgate Brewery Phase One. Survey Report No 1a. p6-8.
<2> SCH1208 Monograph: Strickland T.J & Ward, S.W.. 1978. Excavations at Chester Northgate Brewery 1974-5: A Roman Centurion's Quarters and Barrack (Excavation & survey reports). Survey Report No 1b.
<3> SCH5923 Article in Journal: Strickland, T.J.. 1980. First century Deva: some evidence reconsidered in the light of recent archaeological discoveries. Journal of the Chester Archaeological and Historic Society. 63.
<4> SCH3556 Book: Harris, B.E. (ed). 1987. Victoria County History - A History of the County of Chester: Volume I. p151-2,157,163.
<5> SCH1519 Journal/Periodical: Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies. 1911-Present. Journal of Roman Studies. Vol 40 p97-98.
<6> SCH5742 Article in Journal: Anon. 1974. September 1974: North West Newsletter. Excavations. Council for British Archaeology. Group 5 Newsletter North West. No 24.
<7> SCH5746 Article in Journal: Anon. 1975. March 1975: North West Newsletter. Excavations. Council for British Archaeology. Group 5 Newsletter North West. No 25.
<8> SCH5739 Article in Journal: Anon. 1973. March 1973: North West Newsletter. Excavations. Council for British Archaeology. Group 5 Newsletter North West. No 21.
<9> SCH6497 Article in Journal: Anon. 1973. September 1973: North West Newsletter. Excavations. Council for British Archaeology. Group 5 Newsletter North West. No. 22.
<10> SCH5915 Article in Journal: Lloyd-Morgan G.. 1977. Mirrors in Roman Chester. Journal of the Chester Archaeological and Historic Society. 60.
<11> SCH6225 Newsletter: Grosvenor Museum Excavations Newsletter. 1972. Northgate Brewery Excavations summary. December 1972.
<12> SCH6233 Newsletter: Grosvenor Museum Excavations Newsletter. 1974. Summary of Excavations in Chester. August/September 1974.
<13> SCH6234 Newsletter: Grosvenor Museum Excavations Newsletter. 1974. Summary of Excavations in Chester. October/November 1974.

Related Monuments/Buildings (0)

Related Events/Activities (1)

Event - Intervention: Excavations on the site of Northgate Brewery, Chester in 1974 - 1975 (Phase II) (Ref: CHE/NGB74) (ECH2841)

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Location

Grid reference	Centred SJ 40 66 (13m by 4m) (2 map features)
Map sheet	SJ46NW
Civil Parish	CHESTER NON PARISH AREA, CHESTER, CHESHIRE WEST AND CHESTER
Historic Township/Parish/County	CHESTER, CHESTER HOLY TRINITY, CHESHIRE

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Record last edited

May 7 2013 6:05PM