Excavations began in June 1930 ahead of the construction of the Colchester By-Pass road revealing the Sheepen Dyke and Claudian occupation debris. Excavation in 1931-2 and 1934 was extended along the By-pass and into a field to the north east of Sheepen Farm. This work revealed similar occupation, a possible aqueduct, tile kiln, timber buildings, roads and metal working activity. In 1933 a group of Roman pottery kilns was recovered.<1> In 1935, excavation was extended to the field between the By-pass and Sheepen Road (now occupied by St Helena Secondary School). Finds from this area included two Romano-Celtic temples. Excavations in 1938 along the line of the Roman road discovered in 1931-2 revealed further metal working, an earlier track way, and other Iron Age activity including a coin mint of Cunobelin.<2><3> Further trenches were cut in the late summer/autumn of 1939 in search of a continuation of a road. These trenches were located alongside the eastern fence line of the waterworks enclosure but were barren except for three trenches which provided evidence of a 2nd -3rd century house. Another series of trenches was cut in the autumn of 1939 in the south-west and west parts of field 496. Results were negative apart from an area immediately to the north of Joslins Kilns which showed evidence of a stoke hole or ash heap.<4><5> Pottery from the excavation collected by one of the excavators, J. Snow, was handed into the museum in 1995 (COLEM2000.159).<6>