2015-04-02 (Day 092) The Bridgeness Slab

Around AD 140, Roman Emperor Antonius Pius decided that his northern flank was too far away from Rome, and that he could make more use of his troops closer to home. So he commanded that a wall be built across Central Scotland - with a wall in place he could move much of his strength southwards while a smaller force could defend the northern flank against marauders from the Scottish Highlands.

The wall was built from Old Kilpatrick in the West to Bo'ness in the east, and is known as the Antonine wall.

Centuries passed until 1869, when an engraved slab was discovered near Bo'ness. This slab is believed to have been carved by soldiers building the wall, marking their progress. The inscription reads "For the Emperor Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pius, Father of his Country, the Second Augustan Legion completed [the Wall] over a distance of 4655 paces"

In 2012 a replica of the slab was erected in Bo'ness... and this is that replica. Machine carved from laser-measured analysis of the original, and hand-finished, this shows the text and two decorative panels from the original slab.

More information <a href="http://www.bridgenessslab.org.uk/"&gt;here&lt;/a&gt;.

It's also near a rather interesting doocot - that one has been filed away for a rainy day!