Bothwellhaugh Roman Fort

Bothwellhaugh Roman Fort is a site now located within Strathclyde Country Park in North Lanarkshire, Scotland. The fort is likely to have been linked by roads to sites on the Antonine Wall and south at Castledykes.

A Roman bath house was subsequently found between the fort and medieval bridge. The bath house, which was found in 1973 beneath a pond, was moved to higher ground in 1980 and is now open to the public. The bath house was made up of: a Vestibule, a Frigidarium (cold room with cold plunge bath), a first and second Tepidarium (warm rooms), a Caldarium (hot room with nearby hot bath), and a Praefurnium (furnace room). Perhaps around 20 soldiers at a time could use the bath house.

Hundreds of artifacts were taken from the excavations on the site to the Hunterian Museum at Glasgow University. These include a Roman drain cover slab, a hunt cup, and tile with a paw print. Pottery from the site has established an Antonine occupation but how the site relates to the Antonine Wall remains unclear. The full catalog of the finds is available along with many sketches.

The distance from the thermae (baths) to the fort suggests there are other, as yet undiscovered structures.

References:

• Wikipedia

Address

North Lanarkshire, United Kingdom

Details

Founded: 142-162 AD
Category: Prehistoric and archaeological sites in United Kingdom