When Lincoln's Greatest Roman Treasure was Almost Lost

 

From the original blogpost 31 May 2012

Newport Arch was the north gate of the upper Roman town of Lindum Colonia.  It is now the only Roman arch in the country still open to traffic.  It is the entrance to Lincoln's historic centre that includes most of Roman and Medieval Lincoln.

Newport Arch probably got its name in the medieval period, many houses were demolished for the building of Lincoln castle in the late 11^th century and the displaced residents moved to an area north of what is now known as Newport.  At the time it was open country but soon grew and eventually had its own market.

Built in the 3rd century, Ermine Street passed through it to link Lincoln to another major Roman provincial centre, York.  The arch was enlarged when the city became capital of the province Flavie Caesariensis in the 4th century.  The remains we see today are of the inner arch and a footway on the east side of the arch, the outer arch was demolished in the late 18^th century.  The arch was much higher in Roman times, approximately 2.4 metres of it are below today’s ground level.

More about the design of the gateway was discovered in 1954 when the north-west bastion, a semi-circular  structure, was excavated, the remains of which are still visible.  There would have been another bastion on the north-east side of the gateway, the remains of that are now below the adjoining cottage.

The modern age has brought damage from motor vehicles, the worst of which happened in 1964 when a lorry carrying peas severely damaged the upper part of the arch.  This resulted in its dismantling and rebuilding.  To see an image of the accident please click here.

Lincoln’s Stonebow now stands on the site of the Roman south gate of the lower city

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