GC1FD8W Bathtime at the Forum (Traditional Cache) in East Midlands, United Kingdom created by Alice Band

This cache has been archived.

Deceangi: As the Cache Owner has failed to action a Needs Archiving Log, I'm Archiving this cache for Non Maintenance.

Please avoid geolitter by removing any remaining traces of your cache or contact a local cacher to do so for you. If you are having difficulty doing so then please contact me via my profile and I will try to get someone to assist. This is particularly important if your cache appears to contain Travelbugs or Geocoins.

Deceangi Volunteer UK Reviewer

GC1FD8W ▼

A cache by Alice Band Message this owner

Hidden : 8/19/2008

Difficulty:

Terrain:

Size: Size: other (other)

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Geocache Description:

The Jewry Wall has some of the best preserved Roman building work in England. This cache is wheelchair friendly and you are looking for a typical urban magnetic nano. THIS CACHE IS NOT LOCATED ANYWHERE ON THE RUINS. A cache common in London and Manchester, now in Leicester.

The Jewry Wall managed to survive when the medieval builders demolished the rest to reuse the bricks and stones within the walls. One part of it even became the west wall of the nearby St. Nicholas church when it was built in Saxon times. A quick look at the tower will show you where much of the rest of the building ended up.
Its curious name may originally derive from the 24 'Jurats' or medieval Borough Councilors who met in the churchyard. In 1722 William Stukeley, the famous antiquarian illustrator first coined the phrase 'Jewry Wall' when he mapped and drew the remains that still stood at the time. When Stukeley began to draw the stone walls they were still known as 'The Temple of Janus' by the Leicester citizens. The Jewry Wall was thought to have been the old original gate into Leicester as the surviving arches resembled a gateway, and as the Roman god of doors, gates and passageways was Janus (also represented January) the wall received its name. Some period accounts refer to the Jewry Wall as "The Janua of the Old City". Stones in the wall come as far away as the Derbyshire Peak district.

The modern name of Jewry Wall has been in use since the 19th century, and no records have been found of any Jewish quarter in the city.

St. Nicholas church is known to have been built over an earlier Roman temple, which in turn has been built over an earlier Iron Age site, making it one of the oldest places of worship still in use in the city. The nearby underpass was bulldozed through the city's Roman Forum (a bit like a Roman version of the Shires) in the 1960's and was sadly never excavated. Pillars found at the site can be seen in the graveyard.

If you use your common sense you will find this cache quickly. There is no need to enter the ruins below, but if you have the time both the ruins and the museum are free to visit. Please return the cache exactly where you found it so that it can last for other cachers. People will ignore you as its a popular spot with tourists and the curious looking over the monument. As its a nano cache don't forget your pen!