Posted on 01/13/2008 9:45:00 PM PST by SunkenCiv
Remains of what was one of the biggest Roman bridges to be built in Britain have been reassembled on the banks of the River Tyne. The 50ft long and 10ft high reconstruction is opposite Corbridge Roman site in Northumberland and near the spot where the ornate stone bridge spanned the river. Excavations rescued stonework from the bridge which was threatened by river erosion. The bridge carried Dere Street, the main South-North road, over the Tyne to the important Roman fort and supply base at Corbridge -- and was built accordingly. The excavations revealed that the bridge, built around 160AD, had between six and 10 arches and was probably highly decorated with columns, elaborate parapets, altars and statues of gods and the emperor and his family... no stone Roman bridges have been found in the south of England, with even the span over the Thames at London built in wood... Around the 5th Century, after the Roman occupation had ended, the ramp was undermined by river erosion and collapsed, which meant that the span went out of use. Research also showed that the bridge was the source of the stones used in the construction of the crypt of the church built by St Wilfrid in Hexham in 674AD, which is now beneath Hexham Abbey... Hundreds of tonnes of stone from the bridge remain on the river bed.
(Excerpt) Read more at journallive.co.uk ...
85% of the people of England can trace their DNA back to ancient times...roughly 12,000 years ago at the end of the Ice Age.
There were invaders but not many stayed long enough to leave DNA traces. My yDNA, R1b (DYS390-23), indicates that I was one of those invaders from Denmark.
I haven’t done the DNA thing yet, but records trace back to the 1750s show the first of my particular branch of the clan showing up in the Colonies at the time above.
We don’t know if he came as part of the Black Watch during the French and Indian Wars, or as part of the highland clearances, though.
Pesky Scots.
The odds are overwhelming that your ancestor was probably in the great wave of immigration that brought over 250,000 Scots and Scots/Irish to America in that period.
:’) Hey, if it were up to me, all the Roman bridges would be rebuilt, and everyone in Britain would have to wear a toga and heat their houses using hypercausts. ;’)
Nicely preserved, nice pic. Thanks! Probably gets just enough attention and use to keep it from grassing over, but not enough to wear holes in it. And obviously frost heaving hasn’t been a major problem.
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