St Constantine's Cells are a series of three rock-cut chambers carved into the sandstone cliff above the River Eden at Wetheral, Cumbria, traditionally linked in medieval legend with St Constantine but almost certainly of considerable antiquity. Nearby, on the same cliff face, is a rock-cut Latin inscription (RIB 1009) reading "MAXIMVS SCRIPSIT" with associated names, generally dated to the Roman period and pointing to use or visitation of the riverside cliffs during the 2nd–4th centuries AD.
Source: Pleiades — A Community-Built Gazetteer and Graph of Ancient Places. View the Pleiades record →
The site lies in the hinterland of the Hadrian's Wall zone, between the fort at Stanwix (Uxelodunum) and the supply route along the Eden valley, and the inscription is one of relatively few informal rock-cut Roman texts in northern Britain — comparable to graffiti at Gelt Quarry (the "Written Rock of Gelt") nearby, suggesting the cliffs were used by Roman personnel, perhaps quarrymen or travellers. The cells themselves, whatever their original date, were later appropriated into Christian eremitic tradition and associated with the medieval Benedictine priory at Wetheral.
No systematic excavation has been published; knowledge rests on antiquarian description (notably by Lysons and later observers) and epigraphic recording of the inscription, which has weathered significantly. The chambers themselves have no
St Constantine's Cells are a series of three rock-cut chambers carved into the sandstone cliff above the River Eden at Wetheral, Cumbria, traditionally linked in medieval legend with St Constantine but almost certainly of considerable antiquity. It is recorded in the Pleiades gazetteer of ancient places as a site site from the Roman period in Britain.
St Constantine's cells (Wetheral Caves) and rock-cut Roman inscription is classified as a Roman site — a civilian site in the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer. Roman Britain's archaeology encompasses thousands of sites ranging from legionary fortresses and marching camps to villas, temples and towns.
Several Roman sites lie within a short distance, including Scalesceugh Roman kilns (4.4 km), Park House Roman fort (4.6 km), Roman camp and signal station 600m south-east of Wreay Hall (5.5 km). Aubrey Research maps over 2,200 Roman sites across Britain, drawn from the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer.
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