Colchester Castle is one of the most important historic buildings in Britain. It houses an archaeological collection of international significance.
The Grade 1 listed building, one of the most important historic buildings in the country, also houses a museum with exceptional collections, including Roman and Anglo-Saxon treasures.
Our approach to the building has been to remove recent accretions so that visitors will see far more of the architecture of this unique and fascinating building and so will have a far better appreciation of its extraordinary history. New display structures are freestanding with no fixings into the building fabric and are clearly identifiable as modern interventions avoiding confusion and retaining the legibility of the historic building.
The new displays now offer visitors a far better understanding of the Castle itself, how it was built, its long history and what remains today.
AV, multimedia and new media plays an integral part in the interpretive approach of the visitor experience. Immersive and experiential interpretations of two dramatic events in Colchester’s history are included; one is an AV dramatisation of the Boudica Uprising. The Temple of Claudius once stood where the Castle is now. Built by the Romans and destroyed by the rampaging Boudica, the temple now forms the foundations of the Castle and can be accessed by a small stair. Emerging into the remains of the temple the lights dim and ‘flame effect’ rises around the walls of the vault chamber. The sound of panic, fills the air and cheering Iceni warriors can be heard outside.