Over the past three years, archaeologists from University of Leicester Archaeological Services (ULAS) have been working with Leicester Cathedral to reveal the story of the 900-year-old church and the Roman city buried beneath it.
The excavations, carried out before construction of the new Heritage & Learning Centre in the Cathedral Gardens, have resulted in a remarkable archaeological archive of regional and national significance.
Discoveries include a highly unusual, continuous 850-year sequence of burial activity, as well as Anglo-Saxon, Roman and prehistoric activity dating back over 15,000 years.
The archaeology is currently in the post-excavation assessment phase and the results have the potential to tell powerful and engaging stories about Leicester's past which, we hope, will capture your imagination.
Find out more about the archaeological discoveries via ULAS' blogs below.
You can catch up with the latest news from the Leicester Cathedral Revealed project here.
The Leicester Cathedral Revealed project has been made possible thanks to the National Lottery Heritage Fund and National Lottery players.
Short film - archaeological discoveries
WARNING! Images of human skeletal remains are shown in this video.
Leicester Cathedral Revealed involved extensive archaeological work as part of the constructing the new visitor and learning centre. This film by Alex Wright shows the process of undertaking the archaeological excavation and a glimpse of what was discovered.
Short film - Excavating a Medieval mass burial
WARNING! Images of human skeletal remains are shown in this video.
Leicester Cathedral's construction of a new Heritage & Learning Centre in the Cathedral Gardens has revealed a fascinating snapshot of life in Leicester over the past 2,000 years. This includes a mass burial pit containing over a hundred individuals who all died in the late 11th or early 12th century, a stark reminder that Leicester has previously suffered from and survived catastrophic events. This video shows archaeologists excavating one of the burial layers in snow in March 2023.
Short film - Discovering a 19th century grave stone
This video shows the discovery and reconstruction of a smashed 19th-century gravestone, found by archaeologists from ULAS in November 2021.
3-D interactive images
Click the links below to learn more about key find and discoveries.
