ULAS and the University of Leicester School of Archaeology and Ancient History are pleased to announce the launch, today, of a new website romanleicester.com.

Walk through Leicester today and it is often hard to imagine that we are treading on over 2,000 years of history. But now, with more than 80 years of archaeological excavations and hundreds of years of antiquarian discoveries in the city, from Kathleen Kenyon’s pioneering excavation of the Jewry Wall Roman baths in the 1930s to the current work of University of Leicester Archaeological Services (ULAS), Leicester is one of the most excavated cities in Britain, giving us an exceptional insight into what life was like in the city in the past.

Roman Leicester (Ratae Corieltavorum) was a vibrant multicultural centre from its earliest phases and the new website provides a wealth of resources, activities and information which examine the nature of everyday life in Ratae and the wider Roman world, focusing on the experiences and responses of ordinary people over four centuries of Roman rule.

The website is inspired by recent archaeological discoveries in Leicester carried out by University of Leicester Archaeological Services (ULAS) and is informed by the research of the School of Archaeology and Ancient History (SAAH), University of Leicester.

Our aim is to make it a hub for students, teachers and anyone with an interest in Leicester’s past to find out more about the city’s amazing Roman legacy.

We are grateful to Leicester Creative Business Depot, the Friends of the Jewry Wall Museum, Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society and Classics for All for their support.

The website launches today, Saturday 11 July, with a wide range of creative activities from 12-4pm. Live workshops and activities include Roman hairdressing, bread making, soap sculpture and mosaic making!