'Mysterious' Roman artefact to go on show

The dodecahedron has baffled experts as to its use

A rare "mysterious" Gallo-Roman dodecahedron discovered by an amateur archaeological team has gone on display in Nottingham.

The 12-sided hollow object will be on show at the University of Nottingham Museum at Lakeside Arts from Friday until 18 January 2026.

The museum said the item was one of archaeology's enigmas as its purpose remains unknown and there are no references in Roman texts or depictions of them.

The artefact - which stands about 8cm tall and weighs 245g - was found in the Potter Hill area of Norton Disney, Lincolnshire, in June 2023.

Richard Watts, from the archaeological team, found the dodecahedron in 2023

The Norton Disney History and Archaeology Group began excavating at a Roman site in the village close to a Roman villa and the Fosse Way Roman road in 2019.

The museum said the excavation was coming to an end when the team discovered the "rare and very fine example" of a Gallo-Roman dodecahedron.

It said while most other examples had been found damaged, or as fragments, the Norton Disney dodecahedron was complete and in "remarkable condition".

Richard Parker, secretary of the archaeology group, said: "We thought we were very much on a fairly routine Roman site, finding lots of Roman masonry, a huge amount of Roman pottery and then on the second to last day, we made this really spectacular and unusual discovery of a Gallo-Roman dodecahedron.

"It was found unusually in a Roman quarry pit with lots of other materials, such as pottery and bone and nails.

"That tells us a little bit about the dating of it and gives us a clue about why that dodecahedron was found there."

Mr Parker said it was the only one to be discovered in the Midlands of the 33 identified in Britain.

The Norton Disney Group began excavating at the Roman site in 2019

In January 2024, the find featured in an episode of Digging for Britain, with presenter Prof Alice Roberts saying: "It has to be one of the greatest, most mysterious, archaeological objects I've ever had the opportunity to look at up close."

Mr Parker said after this, the discovery got worldwide attention.

"The curiosity is that people have been finding them for 300 years and nobody has any idea what they are," he said.

"It's so unusual, so odd in appearance, and just makes absolutely no sense.

"There's still a great mystery within archaeology."

A total of 130 dodecahedra that have been found have come from the area known to the Romans as Gaul.

This included modern France and Belgium, as well as parts of the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy.

The museum said the discovery prompted further questions about Norton Disney's importance in Roman times.

The artefact is part of a free Norton Disney dodecahedron exhibition, which looks back at the last two years of excavations at the Roman site, and delves into the current understanding of the mysterious dodecahedron.

Mr Parker added the exhibition would also "illustrate the circumstances" of how the dodecahedron was found and the history of the site.

On Saturday, the museum will be celebrating the opening of the exhibition by being part of the free Roman-themed, Festival of Archaeology event.