Milecastle 7 | |
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Tyne and Wear, England, UK | |
Location in
Tyne and Wear | |
Coordinates | 54°58′48″N 1°40′35″W / 54.980119°N 1.676469°W |
Grid reference | NZ20806510 |
Part of a series on the |
Military of ancient Rome |
---|
Ancient Rome portal |
Milecastle 7 (Benwell Bank or Benwell Hill) was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. The milecastle itself has not been discovered by archaeologists and its presumed location lies beneath a modern housing development. Roman finds have been made in the area and the associated structure of Turret 7B is a significant surviving structure of the wall.
Milecastle 7 has not been located. English Heritage currently lists it at a presumed location midway between Turret 6B (which was located in 1751) and Turret 7A (which has visible remains). [1] This location is covered by modern housing development. [1]
A site investigation in 1928 failed to discover any trace of the milecastle. [1] Three stones have been found in the area of Milecastle 7 bearing the markings of the Legio II Augusta. Their style dates them to the late 2nd century AD, suggesting that the wall here was repaired around that date. [2]
Each milecastle on Hadrian's Wall had two associated turret structures. These turrets were positioned approximately one-third and two-thirds of a Roman mile to the west of the Milecastle, and would probably have been manned by part of the milecastle's garrison. The turrets associated with Milecastle 7 are known as Turret 7A and Turret 7B.
Turret 7A is located in Denton Burn, in between Thorntree Drive and Brignall Gardens off the A186. [3] During the construction of a nearby house in 1923 a sestertius coin dating to the reign of Emperor Trajan was discovered. [3] Another coin was found in 1929. [3]
Location: 54°58′55″N 1°40′57″W / 54.981843°N 1.682549°W
Turret 7B (Denton Hall Turret or Denton Turret) is located in West Denton opposite East Denton Hall (also known as Bishops House) on West Road. [4] The turret is up to six courses high and is made from sandstone. It is recessed by 5 feet (1.5 m) into a section of the broad part of Hadrian's Wall that measures 65m long. [4] Turret 7B is 13 feet (4.0 m) wide north to south and 14 feet (4.3 m) east to west with a 3 feet 8 inches (1.12 m) wide entrance in its south side. [4] The wall associated with Turret 7B is the furthest east of the known surviving sections. [5] Small sections of consolidated wall lie between Turret 7B and 7A at 54°58′58″N 1°41′10″W / 54.98287°N 1.68616°W and 54°58′58″N 1°41′08″W / 54.98271°N 1.68546°W. [6]
The turret was first located in 1928 and excavated by the Office of Works in 1929. [4] The excavation discovered a heap of pottery in the centre of the east wall, which has been suggested as the location of a window. [7] Three different levels of floor were found suggesting three stages of occupation of 122–196, 205–295 and 300–367 AD. [4] [7] The original floor was constructed of clay and contained a hearth and a stone box, with a stone bowl on it, the floor had been partially repaired with flagstones. A spearhead and the binding from a shield were discovered within the repair. [7] A building had been constructed over the turret and 18th-century pottery remains associated with this were also found. [7] Another excavation was carried out in 1936. [4] It has been proposed that Turret 7B was one of the structures garrisoned by soldiers based at the Condercum fort to the east in Benwell. [8]
The turret was placed under English Heritage guardianship by 1971. [4] The turret and attached wall are maintained as a single property by English Heritage (known as "Denton Hall Turret"). The organisation operates the property as an open access site with no entrance fees. [9] [10] Turret 7B was the first site on Hadrian's Wall visited in Guy de la Bédoyère's BBC Radio 4 series The Romans in Britain. [11]
Location: 54°59′03″N 1°41′28″W / 54.984139°N 1.691234°W
Monument | Monument Number | English Heritage Archive Number |
Milecastle 7 | 24841 | NZ 26 NW 1 |
Turret 7A | 24842 | NZ 26 NW 2 |
Turret 7B | 22648 | NZ 16 NE 1 |
Milecastle 7 | |
---|---|
Tyne and Wear, England, UK | |
Location in
Tyne and Wear | |
Coordinates | 54°58′48″N 1°40′35″W / 54.980119°N 1.676469°W |
Grid reference | NZ20806510 |
Part of a series on the |
Military of ancient Rome |
---|
Ancient Rome portal |
Milecastle 7 (Benwell Bank or Benwell Hill) was a milecastle of the Roman Hadrian's Wall. The milecastle itself has not been discovered by archaeologists and its presumed location lies beneath a modern housing development. Roman finds have been made in the area and the associated structure of Turret 7B is a significant surviving structure of the wall.
Milecastle 7 has not been located. English Heritage currently lists it at a presumed location midway between Turret 6B (which was located in 1751) and Turret 7A (which has visible remains). [1] This location is covered by modern housing development. [1]
A site investigation in 1928 failed to discover any trace of the milecastle. [1] Three stones have been found in the area of Milecastle 7 bearing the markings of the Legio II Augusta. Their style dates them to the late 2nd century AD, suggesting that the wall here was repaired around that date. [2]
Each milecastle on Hadrian's Wall had two associated turret structures. These turrets were positioned approximately one-third and two-thirds of a Roman mile to the west of the Milecastle, and would probably have been manned by part of the milecastle's garrison. The turrets associated with Milecastle 7 are known as Turret 7A and Turret 7B.
Turret 7A is located in Denton Burn, in between Thorntree Drive and Brignall Gardens off the A186. [3] During the construction of a nearby house in 1923 a sestertius coin dating to the reign of Emperor Trajan was discovered. [3] Another coin was found in 1929. [3]
Location: 54°58′55″N 1°40′57″W / 54.981843°N 1.682549°W
Turret 7B (Denton Hall Turret or Denton Turret) is located in West Denton opposite East Denton Hall (also known as Bishops House) on West Road. [4] The turret is up to six courses high and is made from sandstone. It is recessed by 5 feet (1.5 m) into a section of the broad part of Hadrian's Wall that measures 65m long. [4] Turret 7B is 13 feet (4.0 m) wide north to south and 14 feet (4.3 m) east to west with a 3 feet 8 inches (1.12 m) wide entrance in its south side. [4] The wall associated with Turret 7B is the furthest east of the known surviving sections. [5] Small sections of consolidated wall lie between Turret 7B and 7A at 54°58′58″N 1°41′10″W / 54.98287°N 1.68616°W and 54°58′58″N 1°41′08″W / 54.98271°N 1.68546°W. [6]
The turret was first located in 1928 and excavated by the Office of Works in 1929. [4] The excavation discovered a heap of pottery in the centre of the east wall, which has been suggested as the location of a window. [7] Three different levels of floor were found suggesting three stages of occupation of 122–196, 205–295 and 300–367 AD. [4] [7] The original floor was constructed of clay and contained a hearth and a stone box, with a stone bowl on it, the floor had been partially repaired with flagstones. A spearhead and the binding from a shield were discovered within the repair. [7] A building had been constructed over the turret and 18th-century pottery remains associated with this were also found. [7] Another excavation was carried out in 1936. [4] It has been proposed that Turret 7B was one of the structures garrisoned by soldiers based at the Condercum fort to the east in Benwell. [8]
The turret was placed under English Heritage guardianship by 1971. [4] The turret and attached wall are maintained as a single property by English Heritage (known as "Denton Hall Turret"). The organisation operates the property as an open access site with no entrance fees. [9] [10] Turret 7B was the first site on Hadrian's Wall visited in Guy de la Bédoyère's BBC Radio 4 series The Romans in Britain. [11]
Location: 54°59′03″N 1°41′28″W / 54.984139°N 1.691234°W
Monument | Monument Number | English Heritage Archive Number |
Milecastle 7 | 24841 | NZ 26 NW 1 |
Turret 7A | 24842 | NZ 26 NW 2 |
Turret 7B | 22648 | NZ 16 NE 1 |