Page:History of Manchester (1771), Volume 1, by John Whitaker.djvu/118

Chap. IV. OF MANCHESTER. 89 But near the place where the coins were difcovered was very lately a mount one yard in height and about thirty in circum- ference. In the rubbifli of this mount, and about three yards below the furface of the ground, was dug up the foundation of a building which was conftru&ed of ftone and had a flooring of bricks. Upon the eaftern fide of this building, and beneath Jthe level of this flooring, was - a fmall chamber four yards in length and two and a half in breadth. It was fupported by pilafters rifing half a yard in height and formed of fquare bricks. And it was paved with mortar and bricks pounded to a great hardnefs and laid to the thicknefs of a yard This was clearly a Roman Hypocauft, and fuch a flooring was clearly defigned to bear the requifite force of the fire ; as the {pace between the pilafters was fuflkient to admit the body of a boy, and the fur- face of the floor was covered with a quantity of black aihes* And on the weftern fide of this building, where was pretty certainly a temple, were dug Mp a Roman altar and its bafis* The altar is now in my own pofleffioa* and it and its inferip* tion are repreiented in the plate. And the infeription at full length is. this, Fortunae Sacrum Caius Antonius Modeftus Centurio Legionis Sextse Vi&ricis Piae Fidelis Votum folvit lu- bens merito, 'Caius Antonius Modeftus Centurion of the fixth victorious pious and faithful legion confecrated this altar to Fortune, and with pleafure difchai ged the vow which he owed. ' Thus plainly are the remains evinced to be Roman. And thus cleUrly have we found what Induftry has vainly toiled and Genius has ineffectually fchemed to difcover through the long extent of a century and an half, the real fite of Cambodunum. The town was conftru&ed along thefe four clofes, and the fta* tion mufl have been placed upon the neighbouring fields and I immediately beyond the channel of the weftern ftreamlet. There • is a proper (ite for a camp, a lingula formed by the union of the two above-mentioned brooks, and defended by their deep chai> Ht0 ^x>n two fides, -fr So fituated were the town and the ftation of Cambodunum, and four Roman roads commence at both, and go away td N Mai>chefter