66 
which comprises no less than 110 pieces of pottery (with the 
names of the potters,) and others, amongst which are more 
than 100 pieces of Samian ware of various patterns, and more 
than 200 instruments and ornaments in metal—mostly bronze. 
But perhaps the most interesting among the recent discoveries 
is a stone altar, about three and a half feet high, which now 
presents an appearance nearly perfect, though when found it 
was broken into innumerable fragments. It represents a 
nearly undraped male figure, standing within an arched alcove, 
crowned with a radiate coronet; a cornucopia rests on the 
left arm, while the right holds a patera, from which the ‘figure 
is in the act of pouring a libation on to an altar. On the 
architrave above is inscribed “G.S. H.V.I.S. L.0.C.,” which 
letters stand for Genio Sacrum Huvjvs Loci, (Sacred to the 
Genius of this place.) Much attention was directed to the 
curious palindrome or squared words on a piece of painted 
wall-plaister, which have at different times given occasion to 
much discussion,—many believing them to be of medieval 
rather than of Roman origin. The words, rudely scratched in 
Roman capitals, are as follow :— 
BOS ks 
OR fH ROA 
T EH Nie 
A TEE hs | 
SLB ES: NR 8 AR 
It will be seen that these words read either horizontally or 
perpendicularly, up and down, form the same words. Now it 
is not a little remarkable that these same words, so arranged, 
are recorded as having been found in a Cornish pedler’s pack 
of charms so lately as 1873, and Mr. Brrcn, of the British 
Museum, has found them in a M.S: of the 17th century, con- 
taining magical signs and charms against wounds and bruises, 
inscribed beneath with the words contra hostes et inimicos. Yet 
strange to say, there seems to be no doubt that the words 
so scrawled on the piece of wall-plaister in the Museum at 
Cirencester are in good Roman lettering of what is known as 
the “Rustic” character, of the first or second century of the 
