Description: Engraving taken from Stukeley's 'Itinerarium Curiosum', published 1776. 'A prospect of Ad Pontem upon the Eminence, a mile south on the Foss. A marks the Old Work Sprint; B the Foss; C a Tumulus and RR, the Roman City'. The Trent is on the left with East Bridgeford and Bingham is marked on the right by its church spire. Looking north-west? The Fosse or Foss Way is the Old English name of a Roman road running from Lincoln, through Newark in Nottinghamshire, via Leicester and Bath to Exeter. For the first few decades after the Roman invasion of Britain in AD 43, the Fosse Way marked the western frontier of Roman rule in Britain. The word 'Fosse' is derived from the Latin Fossa meaning 'ditch'. It is possible therefore that the road began as a defensive ditch which was later filled in and converted into a road. Or possibly a defensive ditch ran alongside the road for at least some of its length. The Fosse Way is the only Roman road in Britain to retain its original Latin name, most others were named by the Saxons, centuries after the Romans left Britain. Many parts of the Fosse Way still exist and form parts of modern roads, although there are many gaps. Between Leicester and Lincoln the A46, follows the route of the Fosse Way. Many parts of this stretch maintain its roman 'straightness'. South of Leicester, the road follows the route of the old A46. Upon the building of the M69, this part of the A46 was renumbered as the B4114. However, a couple of miles north of Watling Street, now the A5, the B4114 diverges from the line of the Fosse Way. A modern road picks up the alignment again south of the A5 as the B4455 in Warwickshire. The B4455 follows the route of the Fosse Way for the entire length of Warwickshire, until it joins the A429 near the border with Gloucestershire. The A429 follows the Fosse Way's route until just south of the town of Cirencester. Beyond the A429, a short section of the A433 continues along the Fosse Way. However, after this point, the Fosse Way route does not correspond to any major modern roads. Between that point and Bath the only modern routes to follow the road are short, unconnected sections of a few country lanes. Between Bath and Exeter, the Fosse Way's route is roughly followed by a number of modern roads, including the A367, A37 and A303. See http://www.nottshistory.org.uk/articles/tts/tts1908/autumn/margidunum1.htm for further information on Ad Pontem.