29/11/2001

Builders have stumbled upon a 2,000 year old Roman burial site as they worked to clear an area in Carmarthen, West Wales.

Museum experts were called in after a pair oil lamps, an urn containing cremated bones and other artefacts were unearthed behind the highway maintenance depot in the town.
 
The findings are thought to be the remains of two people who died in the first or second century AD.They have been viewed by experts from Cambria Archaeology. The lamps are in such good condition their long-dead maker’s name can be clearly seen.
 
Local County Councillor June Williams, who rushed to the site to see the artefacts, said: "I think it’s a fantastic discovery, especially as I know of no documentation about Romans living in this part of Carmarthen.
 
 "It’s really exciting to find something like this right on your doorstep and I’m looking forward to seeing if there is anything else there."
 
 The artefacts will now be sent away for analysis before being shown at Carmarthen Museum in Abergwili, whose staff were first at the scene.
 
 Curator Gavin Evans said: "This is a very rare and exciting find. Everything is in astonishingly good condition, and it will make a valuable addition to the museum and to our idea of the people who lived in Roman Carmarthen."

The rest of the work will now be overseen by an archaeological expert, and there are high hopes of more findings.

Source:	Carmarthen County Council
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