The Lanes 'Gants' - Colchester

Artist: Katayoun Dowlatshahi Client: Essex County Council Landscape Architect: Place Services, Essex County Council Budget: £60,000 / £25,000 Material: Granite sets Location: The Lanes, Colchester I was commissioned by Essex County Council to propose an in-ground concept for the integration of artwork in 3 lanes ‘gants’ that run between the High Street and Culver Street in Colchester: Pelham Lane, St Nicholas Passage and Bank passage. This project is still ongoing. Central to the artwork proposed is the notion of discovery, two quite significant coin hoards were discovered on or very near the site of Bank Passage and Pelham Lane in 1902 and 1969. This whole area of the high street was known to be the financial centre for Colchester during the Medieval period. The hoards were believed to belong to Jewish bankers “In 1290, in common with all the Jews in England, they were ordered by Edward I to leave the kingdom, taking only what they could carry”.