Roman harness stud from Usk
An elaborate copper alloy stud decorated with rings of inlaid glass mosaic. The stud almost certainly adorned a horse harness. Found before 1862. An exact twin from Chepstow is in the British Museum.
The presence of an early legionary fortress at Usk (Burrium) was detected as recently as the late 1960s. It was built about the year AD 55, probably by the Twentieth Legion, as a base for the conquest of south Wales. The fortress was defended by a rampart, with timber towers and gateways, and a ditch in front. The buildings would also have been constructed from wood. Usk was vacated in the late 60s, but the fortress was dismantled only when new headquarters were built in AD 74 or 75 by the Second legion, downstream at Caerleon.






