Interesting Postcards

Queen Boudica (from the painting by John McLean)

'Her Royal household was near Thetford, Norfolk. She led the revolt against the Romans in A.D 60 with a chariot pulled by ponies. They destroyed by fire Colchester, London and St. Albans. The revolt was defeated by the Roman army in A.D 61 after which Boudica may have taken her own life by poison.'

Not much is known about the formidable Boudica, but it's clear that she was a grotesquely proportioned ginger woman with the face of a surprised urchin and a body larger than that of a horse. Her fierce Iceni warriors apparently looked like Sting in 'Dune' and wore pedal pushers. To be absolutely fair to the artist (John McLean), he is better known for his abstract rather than figurative work, although, to be absolutely fair to everyone, his abstracts are shit as well. I don't mean to be cruel, but he put his name on this rubbish and took the money so I think my critique is valid.

Interesting Postcards

Colchester and Essex Museum

Conjectural reconstruction of the Temple of Claudius

c. A.D 50-60

Photo: Dennis Mansell

A childhood obsession of mine, I nearly had a heart attack when I visited Colchester Castle with my son last year and this model wasn't in the place it should have been. Happily, it had just been moved somewhere else. Not much of a story, I know, but it's all I've got on the subject.

The Temple of Claudius was razed to the ground along with the rest of Camulodunum circa AD 60 by a very angry Boudica and her Icenic Army. That's a much better story, I should have gone with that.