Britain’s oldest handwritten note discovered in the Great London Dig
The construction site of Bloomberg’s HQ in London is turning out to be a treasure trove of ancient artifacts in what has long been termed as the great London Dig. The latest fascinating discovery is a small manuscript, an I.O.U note in fact, that dates back to the Roman occupation and bears the date January 8. 57 AD. Now fancy the coincidence of Britain’s oldest handwritten note related to finance, which has been found at the site of a modern era financial conglomerate.
The discovery isn’t just one, but among hundreds of roman tablets and artifacts consisting of pottery, art, and papyrus, which has been found at the huge three acre construction site on Queen Victoria Street, in London.
1 Tablets which are Almost 2000 Years Old have been found
Almost 405 tablets were discovered recently, but it was only when archaeologists were sorting and cataloguing the find that they discovered the extraordinary note which is now 2000 years old. Presumably written by a Roman nobleman, the inscription bears the following words-
“”I, Tibullus, the freedman of Venustus have written and say that I owe Gratus, the freedman of Spurius, 105 denarii from the price of merchandise which has been sold and delivered …”
Image Source: www.londonist.com
