In Early September 2010, we visited the amphitheatre to view Gary Drostle's finished mural and to make these photographs for your enlightenment. We were, to put it mildly, disappointed by the (we assume) completed work. After a few re-visits and many conversations with fellow-visitors to the site, we felt that a number of questions now need to be answered:

Where is the promised re-creation of the grandeur of the amphitheatre as its builders designed it- the largest in the whole of the province of Britannia, a place fit for Emperors?

Where is there any attempt to educate the viewer about the grand architecture of the monument and its methods of construction?

Where is the skilled trompe l'oeil, persuading the visitor that the other half of the amphitheatre is really there before them? A glance at the pictures above will clearly show that the mural is unconvincing in this respect.

What, we wonder, is the expected lifespan of the mural? We noticed that, despite the paint being barely dry, signs of staining and decay are already in evidence.

A visit to the artist's website will soon convince you of the excellence of much of his work- we particularly admire his mosaics. So what went so very wrong here in Chester? A snip at a mere £20,000, we have ended up with an uninspiring work that does little to illuminate this very special space.