The mosaic is the product of a community project initiated by the Colchester Archaeological Trust and made possible by a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
The discovery of the Roman chariot racing track at Abbey Fields, Colchester, in late 2004 provided the inspiration for the project.
The mosaic shows a chariot race in progress featuring eight quadrigae -- four-horse chariots. The artwork was created by artist Peter Froste who based his design on a type of Roman mosaic pavement which depicts a bird's eye view of a chariot race in a circus. Over 1500 children helped make the pavement, using more than 200,000 tiles to complete the work.
The full-sized mosaic was unveiled on 19th January 2008, in appalling weather conditions, by Griff Rhys-Jones. An exhibition in the nearby former Garrison Riding School included finds from excavations in the area of the Circus itself, a replica racing chariot made for Channel 4's 'Time Team' special and companion mosaics made by students of a local school.
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