The Hallaton Treasure and
the Romans
Who lived in Britain before the
Romans arrived?
“I am Seren of the Corieltavi tribe.
I will tell you about Iron Age
life.
The Romans are coming and
we must protect our land.”
What was the Iron Age?
It was the period when people used
____
for the first time.
What did Iron Age people use
iron to make?
When was the Iron Age?
It is different across the world but for
Britain it fell between c. 800 BC and AD 43
Do you know what BC and AD mean?
What is the Hallaton Treasure?
Around 2000 years ago, people gathered
at a shrine near Hallaton to
worship their gods.
A shrine is an open-air religious site
People buried thousands
of coins and celebrated with great feasts.
What was found at Hallaton?
Archaeologists found coins and some silver
objects, thousands of pig bones and the
remains of a Roman helmet.
The oldest Roman coin ever found in
Britain was found at Hallaton. It was
made in 211 BC (Before Christ).
Over 5000 gold and silver coins were
found
Coins being excavated from
the Iron Age shrine near Hallaton
What can the Hallaton Treasure
tell us?
• The Treasure was buried around the time of the Roman
invasion of Britain in AD 43
• Iron Age people didn’t read or write and we don’t know
much about life in the Iron Age before the Romans
arrived
• Iron Age people may have received gifts from the
Romans and been on their side
• Iron Age people were making coins and metal objects
• Lots of people were meeting at Hallaton
• The people at Hallaton may have been worried about
Romans so asked gods for help by sacrificing things
What was Iron Age life like
before the Romans invaded?
•Some Iron Age people were farmers,
some were craftsmen who made pots,
jewellery and metal tools
•Most Iron Age people lived in
roundhouses made of wattle and
daub (panels of woven wood and
mud used to fill the gaps) with 20–30
members of their family
•The Romans said Iron Age
people wore colourful, long woollen clothes
•Iron Age people wore brooches, necklaces
and armlets made of bronze and gold
Iron Age people lived in tribes
Can you see the tribe that Seren belonged to?
It covers the area we call the East Midlands
Why did the Romans invade
Britain?
We don’t know exactly…
• They had heard from traders that Britain had many riches and wanted
to take it’s land and precious metals like iron, silver and gold
• Roman leaders wanted to become more popular amongst Roman
people by conquering a new land and making Rome more powerful
What do you think?
Would you have welcomed the
Romans or fought them?
• The Romans said that when in
battle, Iron Age people painted their
skin with blue woad
• They spiked their hair into points and
dyed it with limewash
• Iron Age women took part in battles and
ruled tribes, for example Boudicca of the
Iceni tribe
Iron Age warriors, Dover Museum, Stephen Arnold
Why might Iron Age people have gone into
battle made up like this?
Why did Iron Age people
make sacrifices to their gods?
• Iron Age people sacrificed valuable
items like coins or food to their gods
• Over 300 pigs were eaten or
sacrificed at the Hallaton shrine
• Pigs were generally only eaten
either at special occasions or by
important people
• The Hallaton Treasure may have
been buried as sacrifices
What might Iron Age people have been asking their
gods for protection from?
Find out more about these words
Roundhouse
Excavated
Archaeologist
Limewash
Armlet
Settlement
Tribe
Woad
Shrine
Invader
Sacrifice