| The
town of Caerleon, including the village of Ultra Pontem, which lies
immediately contiguous to it, on the opposite side of the river
Usk, is by no means so considerable in point of extent, or of population,
as we were at the first glance inclined to conceive: the houses
straggle over a wide space of ground, but the area within the walls
is laid out chiefly into orchards, fields, and gardens. There is
nothing also in the appearance of the place to denote respectability,
except the houses of some few gentlemen, resident in the town. Caerleon,
it is to be regretted, has neither trade, nor manufactures; both
of which might be conducted here with spirit and convenience. Mr.
Butler, who has a house in the town, is proprietor of a considerable
tin-work, long since established in Lanverchra parish, at the distance
of a mile and a half from the town, in the road to Ponty-pool. -
The remark of a late tourist (Barber), that "Caerleon derives
all its modern consequence from a participation in the manufacture
of Ponty-pool" is entirely erroneous: the japanned wares, for
the manufactory of which the town of Ponty-pool is celebrated, being
confined, in those parts, exclusively to that place, and the
town of Usk.
In
the garden of Mr. Butler, I was shewn the base of a stone pillar,
of a noble size, that had been recently taken up in this spot;
other remains of pillars bad been discovered also near the same
place before. The gardener assured me still further, that whilst
digging very lately in another part of the ground, which he distinctly
pointed out, his spade accidentally struck upon what he conceived
to be a low flight of stone steps, and which, to all appearance,
were yet lying in their original position. The number of these
steps altogether, could not be ascertained; two or three, only,
were uncovered, and no more were sought after, because at that
season of the year, the removal of the earth, to pursue their
course, would have proved injurious to the garden; and those even,
which his curiosity had prompted him to disclose, were again covered
with the mould, and the ground planted as before.
This
garden is separated only by it lofty wall, from a piece of ground
on the premises of Mr. Gethin, wherein a very curious old Roman
monument was discovered about two years ago. Mr. Gethin's men
were digging a saw pit, by their master's orders, in the spot,
when they found at a small depth below the surface of the earth,
one remarkable large fragment of an inscribed stone; and three
others, also, were soon after perceived within a few feet of the
same place. There is every reason for believing that these fragments
altogether belonged to the same pillar: their aspect, the similarity
of the free-stone, and tenor of the inscription, tending most
completely to confirm that idea. Almost immediately
after these fragments were dug up, much of the inscriptions were
defaced by the facility of the mason employed to clear off such
superfluities; fortunately for the satisfaction of the inquisitive
stranger, a portion of them were transcribed by Mr. Evans, of
Caerau, before the characters were entirely obliterated.
[ Footnote ] These massive fragments
of useful stone, were not destined to remain long unserviceable
to the owner. After a short deliberation, upon the advice of several
neighbours, who wished they might be preserved for the reputation
of the place, they were ordered to be sawn into pieces of a convenient
size for the repairs of his house, and premises: certain pieces
of the stone we readily recognized in the corner of a wall, and
the framework of a window; - the reader will best conceive with
what an emotion of astonishment and regret we detected at the
same time various other portions of this classical memorial of
antiquity that were consigned to a far more ignoble purpose; literally
that of re-edifying a dirty pig-sty!
It
is worthy of observation, that the spot in which these discoveries
were made, lies on the north side of the Church, close to the
burial ground: a spot precisely in the center of the old town;
and from the number of squared stones, pillars, and other striking
vestiges of some unknown stately building, that have at various
periods been perceived here, a conjecture has prevailed, that
the celebrated temple of Diana, built by the Romans in this city,
was situated on, or near, the place where the Church now stands.
That such remains did not constitute any part of the old Cathedral,
for several reasons, we think sufficiently evident. Many heathen
memorials have been discovered within, or about the town; some
of which are yet extant. The most remarkable of these are the
two votive stones mentioned by Camden, one of which commemorates
the restoration of the temple of Diana in this city, by Titus
Flavius Postumius Varus, in the following words:
T.
Fl. Postumius Varus
V. C. Leg. Temp. Dianae
Restituit.
Which
Gibson reads Titus Flavius Postumius Varus Veteranus Cohortis
Legionis Secundae Templum Diana restituit. Horsley, whose opinion
is entitled also to consideration, defines it in a different manner,
though nearly to the same effect. The other stone mentioned by
this author, is an altar dedicated to Severus, and his two sons,
Caracalla, and Geta. Both of these were removed from Caerleon
by Bishop Godwin; and are to be seen now, in a very illegible
state, in the walls of the court-yard of Mathern-Place, in Monmouthshire.
Ruins
of Roman buildings, pillars, pavements, bricks, monumental stones,
urns, sarcophagi, and coins must have once been numerous here
beyond all conception; since, after an interval of fourteen hundred
years, during which they have been certainly sought after, and
applied to various purposes, the store appears inexhaustible.
Some few of the more industrious among the labouring poor, find
every winter a profitable employment, in digging at a venture
for the stones, and even bricks and tiles; many, if not the far
greater number of small houses about the place, have been also
built, and are kept in repair with the materials purloined from
these subterraneous resources. There is no kind of restriction
upon the inhabitants, to prevent their digging for these materials
in the Broad-way, which has hitherto furnished them with plenty.
The space enclosed within the walls, if examined with the like
unceasing perseverance, would be perhaps no less productive. Last
winter, in clearing the Bear-house field, opposite to that in
which Arthur's table is contained, in order to set potatoes, a
vast number of large and small stones were found, more than a
dozen of which were estimated at little less than half a ton,
or a ton weight each; and some much more. The expense of raising
these stones out of the ground is trifling, rarely exceeding six-pence,
or nine-pence per ton, except for the largest; the discovery of
these was of some consequence to Mr. Hughes, who has the lease
of the field, the whole being of fine free-stone.
Such
is the prevailing taste of travellers, to obtain possession of
every portable relic of antiquity, collected about this place;
and such the indifference of the people to preserve them, that
they scarcely ever remain for any great length of time in the
town after they are discovered. A small number have indeed been
hoarded here with more than ordinary care, in the hands of various
individuals, most of which we saw; for being under the escort
of "John", as the people familiarly called our Ciceroni,
we found an easy access to them, without the formality of any
other introduction. – When Mr. Wyndham ascended the lofty
keep of Caerleon Castle, he observed a large Basso-relievo of
a Venus, with a dolphin sporting in her hand, which he admired,
and pronounced to be an undoubted piece of Roman sculpture. Since
that time, the tower has been razed to the foundation; and this
stone became the property of Mr. Richards, an inhabitant of the
town. From recent exposure in his garden, the figure has assumed,
no doubt, a much ruder aspect than it at first exhibited, but
remains of Roman sculpture being far from common, indifferent
as it appeared, I purchased it
[ illustration ], in addition to
various other antiques
[ illustration ] that had been collected
about the town (fragments of inscribed, or figured Roman bricks,
tiles, and specimens of pottery, together with a few pieces of
Roman money, impression of an ancient Episcopal seal of Menevia,
&c.). – At Mrs. Prichard's we saw a large and curious
tile [ illustration
], that had been dug up some years ago in her own garden;
a spot in which some other curious antiques have been at intervals
discovered likewise. The shape of this tile is remarkable; it
is flat, and rather wider at one extremity than the other, with
a raised ledge along each side. The impression in relief, upon
which the abbreviations LEG. II. AVG. appear, prove it indisputably
to be the work of the second Augustan legion, which we know was
partly stationed at Caerleon. Amongst the ruins, in various places
about the fields in the outskirts of the town, fragments of this
kind of tile occurred pretty frequently. They seem to have been
all about the same size, namely twenty-three inches in length,
fifteen in width at the broadest end, and fourteen at the narrowest;
all the inscriptions upon this peculiar kind of tile, when perceptible,
are uniformly alike, so far as we observed; fragments of other
bricks attracted notice as we proceeded, in which the legends
were rather different.
Against
the wall of an out-house, in the garden of Mr. Williams the currier,
is placed a stone about three feet in length, and two in breadth,
inscribed with Roman characters; now scarcely legible through
a coat of plaster, with which the surface has been whitewashed.
Several of the letters are indeed visible through the lime; and
with the obliging assistance of Mrs. Williams, to whom the words
appeared to be familiar, we contrived to trace the following:
"Julia essevunda vixit annos xxxv." Mrs. Williams then
conducted us into an enclosed piece of ground, opposite to the
house, now converted into a kitchen garden, in order to shew us
the exact spot where this stone was found. It was observed some
years ago upon the removal of the earth, to the depth of three
or four feet below the surface, lying horizontally in the ground:
beneath it they perceived both the remains of burnt bones, and
wood charred by the action of fire; from whence it was inferred
that this had been a place of interment in the time of the Romans.
The stone in question was assuredly intended to record the memory
of some one who had lived thirty-five years.
At
the close of half an hour's saunter beyond the town, we reached
the cold bath, erected of late years by Mr. Butler, where several
inscribed stones are preserved, that have been found in the neighbourhood;
and which are supposed to be sepulchral memorials likewise. These,
I must confess, did not entirely answer the expectations I had
formed of them from common report; unluckily they are all of a
small size, and being placed with other materials in the main
wall, are only visible within the building. Having procured the
key, we therefore entered this damp and gloomy place, to inspect
them; but not without the utmost caution, the temporary, loose,
and crazy flooring over the spring, audibly foreboding, at the
pressure of every footstep, that we might otherwise, very possibly,
dip headlong into the water, contrary to our own wishes, and certainly
without permission of the owner. After wandering for a few minutes
in the dark, we were just enabled to perceive the objects of our
visit, at the farthest end of the place. To decypher the characters
with which they are charged, now became a matter of difficulty,
the window shutters being nailed too securely to be thrown open,
at the same time that the door-way could admit only a very scanty
ray of light, to illuminate that particular part of the wall in
which they are present stationary. We contrived,
however, after being accustomed to this light for a little time,
with some trouble, to trace the letters and ornamental lines with
tolerable fidelity
[ illustration ]; one is in the
Roman, and another in what has been termed the early British character.
Returning
from hence along the broad way, we passed through the town, and
again arrived at the scite of the old castle. Traces of this ancient
building, as before observed, are few and inconsiderable in our
days: even upon the mount, which formerly sustained that gigantic
tower, the pride and strength of Caerleon Castle, we found a farmer's
man hoeing potatoes: no vestige of its masonry is now perceptible,
and the steep ascent is divided for the humble purpose above-mentioned,
into narrow strips, that wreath in a spiral manner, from the base
to the summit of the hill. – Fortunately, to relieve the
reader, already, no doubt, fatigued with the dry prolixity of
detail, inseparable from the pursuits of the antiquary, our ramble
about the town in search of its antiquities, terminated here;
after being amply gratified with a much wider range of remark,
and speculation, than we could possibly have entertained the least
conception of, in the outset of our morning's walk. – Once
more, therefore, we are to return, and take a transitory view
of modern Caerleon.
This
town is situated upon rising ground, in a remarkable deep bottom,
that is prettily embosomed by lofty, verdant hills; which opportunely
rise at a less or greater distance, to skirt its environs. Here
the Usk assumes the importance of a noble river, that would be
highly advantageous to Caerleon, should it ever rise to the consequence
of a manufacturing town. It is at present of small consideration
in this respect; but it certainly contributes, in a striking manner,
to beautify the fertile tract of country, through which it undulates,
in the immediate vicinage of the place.
Footnote:
Mr. Evans is persuaded, that the whole formed originally a kind
of pillar: two of the parts he is convinced belonged to one stone,
and measured together nine feet in length, nineteen inches in
breadth, and fifteen inches in thickness. The mutilated abbreviations
on one side, he interprets as a votive inscription by the second
Augustan legion, and the other probably indicated the time at
which it was erected. The third stone, from its superior size,
might serve as the base, and the only inference to be drawn from
it seems to be, that it was dedicated to the consulate of Maximus
and Urinatus Urbanus.
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