The Lexden Lady: From Burial to Biography

CAT Lecture Series 2026

The Lexden Lady - From Burial to Biography: The Life and Death of a High-Status Roman Woman in Colchester

In 2024, the richly furnished burial of a high-status Roman woman was discovered in Lexden, Colchester. No expense was spared in preserving and protecting her body for safe passage into the afterlife. Buried within a beautifully decorated lead coffin, both frankincense and gypsum were found inside, along with jet hairpins. Even more remarkable were the remains of bronze fittings from a bespoke basketry casket which held seven rarely found glass flasks. The Lexden Lady’s burial reveals that Colchester remained a desirable place to live for social elites in the late Roman period, when many of the wealthy were moving to country villas.

Speaker: Laura Pooley

Please note : This series of talks describe and discuss ancient life from an archaeological and historical perspective. Due to the nature of the period some aspects of this topic may cause offence to a modern audience. The intention of the presenter is to be informative and to represent the past as accurately as possible, both for its good elements and bad.