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Housteads

Housteads main claim to fame as a wall fort is the excellent preservation of its latrines. However, in celebration of 1900 years of Hadrian's Wall it had acquired a controversial art installation in the form of a colourful gatehouse decorated with comments from workshop sessions on the Wall. B. and I quite liked it but could see that if this was your only visit to Housteads you might not have wanted the whole thing dominated by a mock gatehouse.

The gatehouse from the side as it straddles the wall of the fort. Scaffolding is visible with a sloping roof with no covering on the framework. Colourful boards in pinks, greens, reds and blues are visible. Particularly dominant is a rectangular board with a pattern made up of black, yellow, blue and green triangles. Some of the panes have text on them but the resolution isn't really good enough to read them. On says STOP in yellow on a red background. Another says DOGS in blue on a green background.

B admires the gatehouse from within the fort. It has two turrets either side of the main entrance which consists of two arches in yellow, pink and red stripes. Small arched windows are visible on the second storey and the pointed turret roofs are in yellow and orange. More colourful boards decorate the sides. Most of the signs are too small to read, but one says Freedom in red on a yellow background.

As above though B is now grinning at the camera.

Looking down from above on the wall of the fort and Hadrian's Wall stretching from its corner out across the fields.

This is the view from up within the gate house.
Looking down on the fort itself. Low walls show the remains of blocky buildings.

Looking down on the fort itself. Low walls show the remains of blocky buildings.

A long room with low stone walls. The centre contains two stone basins and there is a channel in the floor around them.

The latrines.
A sign post points back along Hadrian's Wall to the fort. The mock gatehouse is very visible.

A sign post points back along Hadrian's Wall to the fort. The mock gatehouse is very visible.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I quite like it!

It seemed like a fun thing but it is very in your face so I can imagine for some it spoiled the atmosphere of the place.

What a very jolly building! I particularly like the photo where it's looming behind Bill as if it's just crept up on him and is about to pounce.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only