Piercebridge

PIERCEBRIDGE

(Morbium?)

Quality of Remains

Ease of Access

Atmosphere & Setting

History:

An early bridge over the river Tees at Piercebridge was undoubtedly accompanied by an early fort on the original line of Dere Street, now on the far side of the civilian Vicus. However, the remains of the stone bridge footings now visible are in an entirely different position and date from the very early third century. The currently visible fort at Piercebridge was a stone construction from the mid third century, with no sign of having supplanted a timber fort. The fort was abandoned around 320 AD, but reoccupied in the mid fourth century until the end of Roman control in Britain. The fort itself was a particularly large one and the vicus is equally extensive.

Occupation

Evidence in the form of statues and building inscriptions found at Piercebridge confirm the presence of a vexillation of the Sixth Legion (Victrix). Oddly, another inscription notes the presence of an ordinary soldier from the Twenty Second Legion (Primigenia), who were based in Germany. Further inscriptions note the presence of legionary soldiers here in 217 AD. There are no records of auxiliary units based here.

Remains and Visit:

The preserved remains of the fort (which underlies the entire village) consist of the easternmost part of the fort and the central section of the east wall. From the village green, an alley next to a house leads to the consolidated stonework. There are the scant remains of the east gate and the low but remarkably wide remains of the wall. This shows the great difference between the third century stone fort and the earlier examples which have been rebuilt in stone from earlier timber forts. Instead of a narrow stone facing backed by a sloping earth bank, this wall was ten feet wide and freestanding with a road running along behind. The drains are visible in this road and the large and impressive building on the other side of this road appears to be the Commandant's house, with good quality channelled hypocaust flooring in an unusual 'Y' shape. Painted wall plaster was found in this house. Outside the walls is a section of the fort's defensive ditch that has been taken down to its original depth and on the narrow flat ground between ditch and wall are concrete circles that mark the discovery of 'lilia' or pits for hidden pointed stakes. The kiln visible in the middle of the gate's approach causeway is a medieval construction. The remains of stone buildings partially visible in the bank on the far side are parts of the vicus buildings, including an underground temple to Jupiter Dolichenus which is now buried. More of the civilian settlement lies in the field beyond and an interpretation panel nearby explains the vicus layout. Far down a small path and in a private farmyard that needs permission to enter, are the sadly neglected remains of the northeast corner of the fort, including latrines. With some clearance work and a little consolidation they could be very interesting. Outside the fort and some distance along the road past the George Hotel is a path through the field and down the the river. This leads you to the remains of the Roman bridge over the Tees. The flagstones in the river and the remains of the bridge piers are visible, though these pale beside the stone bridge abutment nearby. These stone footings supported a timber bridge.

Images:


Gate	Defensive ditches	Commandant's house	Hypocaust in the Commandant's house	Buildings in the vicus

Bath house wall	The bridge	Paving at the bridge	Bridge abutment