Chesterholm Museum, Vindolanda

Image: © Andrew Curtis Taken: 13 Mar 2012

Chesterholm was built in 1831 on the remains of a derelict fulling mill by Rev. Anthony Hedley, who was the first excavator of Vindolanda. Between 1929 and 1950 it was the home of Eric Birley who continued the work. It was purchased by the Vindolanda Trust in 1974 to house the site's museum and has been extensively extended. Recently renovated displays in the museum were opened in Spring 2011. View of the museum buildings at Vindolanda beyond the bridge over Chainley Burn. The replica milepost stands by the path in the foreground. It is described as a replica of the milepost that may have preceded the one that stands by the Stangate Road to the north. The replica bears an inscription to the Emperor Hadrian. There is circumstantial evidence that he stayed at Vindolanda when visiting the start of building Hadrian's Wall in AD122. The milestone on the Stangate, marking a point 15 miles west of Corbridge, however, is made of a single piece of sandstone, and has no inscription Image The museum now houses some of the famous writing tablets which were excavated from the Roman Fort, and recently returned to Vindolanda on loan from the British Museum Image They are displayed in a special case, where oxygen, moisture and humidity are constantly controlled and monitored. British Museum curators chose the Vindolanda Tablets as one of their top 10 British Treasures for a BBC2 television program in 2003 http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/online_tours/britain/our_top_ten_british_treasures/the_vindolanda_tablets.aspx

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