Roman Column - Minster Yard, York, UK
N 53° 57.697 W 001° 04.908
30U E 625845 N 5980954
This column, that stands to the south of York Minster, was found during excavation of the south transcept of the Minster in 1969.
Waymark Code: WMJXQF
Location: Yorkshire, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 01/13/2014
Views: 10
The plaque, that is attached to the column and is curved around it, reads:
Roman Column
This Roman column once stood within the Great Hall of the Headquarters
building of the fortress of the Sixth Legion (whose emblem was a bull) in the
fourth century AD. It was found in 1969 during the excavation of the south
transcept of the Minster, lying where it had collapsed.
It was given by the Dean & Chapter to the York Civic Trust, who in 1971
erected it on this site to mark the 1900th anniversary of the foundation of
the city by the Romans in AD 71.
The Minster Quarter website tells us:
Constantine and the Roman Column
The statue by the South Door of York Minster shows Constantine the Great who was proclaimed Emperor of Rome, here in York, in AD306. This event probably took place in the main hall (the basilica) at the back of the Roman headquarters building (the principia). Part of the basilica lies under the Minster’s central tower. Across the road, the Roman column came originally from the interior of the basilica. Beginning in York, Constantine’s reign (306-337) initiated momentous changes in the course of world history. It saw the lifting of religious persecution in the Roman Empire and also the positive promotion of Christianity.