We were in Colchester today, ostensibly to gather things from various shops for Gaby, ahead of her leaving for uni. I never realised so many clothes, paper, bedding, books etc were needed! I'm sure it was not always like that:)

At one point we were so weighed down with materiel, I headed back to the Butt Road car park to put things in the boot. It was then that I saw a sign pointing through an opening in the fence. I of course followed the arrows and ended up at an archaeology open day!

Colchester is famed for being the earliest recorded town in England, it still has a Roman wall around much of the inner area and it was burnt down by Boudiica. Discovered less than ten years ago is the fact it also had a circus. Not the big tent type, but the chariot racing type.

Most of it seems to lie beneath what was an army barracks which is becoming a housing estate as the army moves further out of town. It is the only circus known in the north-west of the Roman Empire. I can't see it ever all being resurrected, but they are creating a large visitors centre and there is this rather wonderful mosaic floor which shows the basics.