RARE treasures excavated from the Roman town of Tripontium by Rugby Archaeological Society (RAS) have been donated to Rugby Art Gallery and Museum.
The archaeological finds have been loaned to the museum since it opened its doors in 2000, but in the year Rugby Art Gallery and Museum celebrates its 25th anniversary, the society has announced it has donated the Tripontium collection to the museum on a permanent basis.
A treasure trove of finds from Tripontium feature in a new exhibition which is now open at the Little Elborow Street venue.
Tripontium: Finds from the Stores includes finds from the Roman settlement which have been in storage for nearly a decade.
A tile decorated with a peacock design.
Latin for ‘place of three bridges’, Tripontium was established as a ‘mutatio’ – or stopping place – on the Roman road to the east of Rugby a few years after the Roman invasion of Britain in AD 44.
Located four miles outside of Rugby on the road later called Watling Street, the stopping place developed into a civilian town and was inhabited for around 400 years before being abandoned in the early 5th century when the Romans departed.
But while the name ‘Tripontium’ was found in Roman records, the location of the settlement remained a mystery until 1836 when Rugby historian and antiquarian Matthew Bloxam found a number of Roman artefacts at the site.
Rugby Archaeological Society started excavations at Tripontium in the early 1960s, work which spanned five decades and resulted in dozens of historic finds.
Tripontium: Finds from the Stores features pottery, including Samian ware and mortarium, jewellery, and a hipposandal, which were fitted to horses’ feet for protection.
The exhibition also includes tiles decorated with writing, drawings and animal prints; painted plaster from Tripontium’s bath house; and a fragment of cloth which was found preserved in a vessel.
Coun Maggie O’Rourke, Rugby Borough Council’s (RBC) spokesperson for partnerships and wellbeing, said: “Rugby Archaeological Society spent 47 years excavating the site of Tripontium and many of the finds loaned to the museum have been on permanent display in the archaeology gallery.
“This new exhibition in the local history gallery brings together pieces from the permanent display with finds which have remained in storage for nearly ten years, finds which have now been donated to the museum thanks to the generosity of the archaeological society.”
Irene Glendinning of RAS said: “RAS has had a long-standing association with RBC, established before the formal opening of Rugby Art Gallery and Museum 25 years ago. We are very grateful for all the help and support over the years.
“This new exhibition provides the opportunity to showcase some of the archaeology and more of the important finds from Tripontium which help tell the story of Roman Britain.”
Tripontium: Finds from the Stores runs at Rugby Art Gallery and Museum until Saturday April 11.
Coun Neil Sandison, Rugby Borough Council’s Liberal Democrat group spokesperson for partnerships and wellbeing, said: “Visitors to this new exhibition may be surprised at how sophisticated the Tripontium settlement was, with our understanding of the site down to the quality of the artefacts uncovered by the Rugby Archaeological Society.”
Visit www.ragm.co.uk for more information.
