A home from Rome

Special guided tours of Aldborough Roman Town, near Boroughbridge, will take place tomorrow (Friday) and also next month as visitors are given an insight into how the Roman stronghold of Isurium Brigantum developed.

Dorothy Stewart, the former custodian of Aldborough Roman Town, will talk about the history of the site and Roman domestic life during the second to fifth centuries AD.

Visitors can join her for tours at 10.30am and 2pm tomorrow and at the same times on Friday, August 23.

The site, which is now occupied by the modern village of Aldborough, was originally the principal settlement of the Brigantes tribe, which, according to English Heritage, was the biggest of its kind in Britain around the time of the Roman invasion.

When the Romans took control of the site in the second century AD, it became known as Isurium Brigantum and was established as a centre of government for the invaders. There, they constructed luxurious villas and many public buildings, including a large forum.

The Romans left the town in the fifth century AD as they retreated from many of the lands they had conquered in an attempt to cling on to their crumbling empire back home.

The guided tours which take place tomorrow and next month will cover the Aldborough Roman Town museum, the Roman wall and allow visitors to learn a little more about some of the spectacular archaeological finds made there over the years. These include the striking lion and geometric star mosaics, which people can still admire.

Also included in the tours will be today's village of Aldborough, with its 14th century church and Georgian manor house.

Each guided tour is limited to 25 people and the admission prices are £3 for adults, £2 concessions and £1.50 for children, though there is no fee for the under-fives. Entrance is free for English Heritage members. For more information, call (01423) 322768.

Updated: 09:29 Wednesday, July 24, 2002