Roman Colchester, Canterbury and Malta: the good and bad news

This is a bit of a "catch up" post about Roman things that have been going on (or being squashed) in the UK and overseas.

First Colchester (or "Camolodunum" to you and me). This is where one of the very few chariot racing tracks have been found outside Italy (in the picture above) -- and the real race is now on to prevent it being covered by a housing estate. The local council has come up with a bit of cash, but the campaigners still need to raise £170,000.One of the fund-raising events takes place this Friday at 2.00 -- when my friend Caroline Lawrence (we were at Newnham together, but she has gone on to great things with her Roman Mysteries) is talking at the local Arts Centre. (Her talk will be referring to her book The Charioteer of Delphi...get it!!)

Not such good news from Roman Canterbury, however, where the Roman Museum is set to be closed.

This is a tremendous collection of Roman stuff, created (as Ray Laurence, the new Prof of Classics at Kent, tells me) after World War II, when bombing had revealed an in situ Roman mosaic. You can read more about it here.

And just to finish this Roman round up: in Malta, where Classics thrives despite lack of funding, a new Classical Association has been launched. Do give them whatever support you can.