Abstract/Summary

A carved coping stone found on the site of a spring near the amphitheatre, Silchester and first reported in 1873 was re-discovered in 2014. The stone does not compare in its carved detail with coping stones from the amphitheatres at Chester and London nor with that recovered from the West Gate, Silchester in 1890, nor does its basal width correspond with that of the arena wall of the Silchester amphitheatre. It is likely to have formed part of a monumental basin similar to that found at Coventina’s Well, Northumberland and commemorating the location of a spring and its associated (unknown) deity. Similarity with the type and decoration of architectural stone used in the construction of the forum basilica suggests a Hadrianic-Antonine date.