'Exceptional' Roman tombstone to be displayed in Cirencester

The tombstone had a Latin inscription as well as decorative carvings in the triangular pediment

A Roman tombstone, dug up in Cirencester earlier this year, will be put on permanent display at the town's Corinium Museum.

The gravestone, thought to be the first of its kind unearthed in the UK, was uncovered in February.

It was found near skeletal remains thought to belong to the person named on its inscription, and is thought to be a unique discovery.

It has not yet been announced when the tombstone will go on display.

Museum director Amanda Hart said she was "delighted" it would be put on show locally.

"The inscription and decoration are unparalleled in the Roman world so it makes it an exceptional piece of archaeology which many people from all over the world will want to come and see," she said.

"It is therefore such a privilege that the tombstone can go on display in the town, not far from where it was actually discovered."

Land owners St James's Place Wealth Management agreed to give the tombstone to the museum after it was discovered during an archaeological dig at the former Bridges Garage site.

It is thought to have belonged to a Roman woman named Bodicacia. The Latin inscription on it reads: "To the shades of the underworld, Bodicacia, spouse, lived 27 years."