Archaeology Awards

A Cardiff excavation that revealed an entirely new monumental Roman suburb in South Wales has been nominated for a prestigious award.

The Lost City of the Legion, as it has become known, has been nominated in the Research Project of the Year category of the Current Archaeology Awards.

Discovered on the site of the Roman Fortress in Caerleon by staff and students from the School of History, Archaeology and Religion, the Lost City was completely unknown to archaeologists and features large public-style buildings that may include marketplaces, administrative buildings, bath-houses and temples.

The Cardiff team also uncovered the remains of a 2000-year-old port – only the second known from Roman Britain - located on the banks of the River Usk just north of the city of Newport. It included the main quay wall, as well as the landing stages and wharves where ships would have docked and unloaded their cargoes.

Voting for the awards is open until Friday 15^th February 2013 and the winners will be announced at the Current Archaeology Live! 2013 conference, held on the 1-2 March.