the route from london to essex has long been important, with old ford being the location of an ancient celtic crossing of the river lea. the route was altered slightly by the romans who created a paved road from london to colchester, which was part of "inter v" on the antonine itinerary, and parts of this were used by a turnpike road, the great essex road. the crossing of the lea moved to its current location at bow around 1110 when matilda, wife of henry i, ordered a distinctively bow-shaped, three-arched bridge to be built over the river. a map from 1766 shows a route from london to lowestoft which follows much of the current a12.