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Roman Villa Discovered Near Tewkesbury

A previously unknown Roman villa has been discovered in England by archaeologists excavating an area in preparation for a pipeline to be laid near Tewkesbury. The excavation has uncovered part of a wealthy Roman villa north of Bredons Norton in Gloucestershire. Two burials pre-dating the villa have also been discovered.

According to Stuart Foreman, an archaeologist from Oxford Archaeology, the most likely dating of the villa is the late-third to the mid-fourth centuries AD. He said: So far we have discovered a masonry building with plaster walls. It’s not impossible that it’s a shrine, but the most likely explanation is that it is a villa. The bit we have exposed is well preserved, with intact flagstone flooring and walls. He explained that the plaster walls were painted with a simple design in dark red and cream colours an indication that the building’s owners were wealthy. The part of the building that has been exposed is built on a terrace cut into a hillside.

Pottery and two coins have been found at the site. The pottery is mainly from the Severn Valley and the Malvern area. The coins are the best indicator that the villa was occupied during the fourth century AD. Mr Foreman added: We haven’t had a huge number of coins from the site, I think because it’s always been a popular spot for metal detectors. But the two coins we have are from the mid fourth century AD. One of them shows the emperor Magnentius and his brother or son, with whom he ruled from 350-353 AD.

Mr Foreman was quoted by thisisgloucestershire as saying: Whenever you find a new villa, it’s of national importance. It’s pretty unusual to find a new villa that hasn’t been recognised before.

Roman Villas in the Cotswolds

There are quite a few Roman villas dotted around the Cotswolds, many of them would have belonged to rich families connected to Cirencester, the capital of Britannia Prima in the fourth century AD.

It’s not impossible that it’s a shrine, but the most likely explanation is that it is a country villa. The bit we have exposed is well preserved, with intact flagstone flooring and walls

Within a 20-mile radius of Cirencester, there are approximately 30 Roman villas, including the well known ones such as Chedworth and Hucclecote and smaller sites such as Barnsley Park Roman villa, Bibury, Clear Cupboard, Spoonley, Wadfield, Rodmarton, Barnes Green and Withington.

The mid-third century was a disturbed period for the Roman empire and, according to Stuart Foreman, the Cotswolds, around Cirencester, was something of a haven from some of the military turbulence that was happening in Britain and the rest of the empire. The ‘third century crisis’ played out during the greater part of the third century AD (from 235-284 AD).

There is no clear evidence of who would have lived in the villa. At this stage, itis impossible to say whether they were part of the Roman elite, settled military personnel or a Romano-British family who had made their fortune.

Two Burials

Two burials have also been found at the site. One is a crouched inhumation but no objects or material have been found in the burial, so the date could range from the Iron Age to Anglo-Saxon times. It’s about 150m away from the villa.

The second burial is an Iron Age cremation. According to Mr Foreman, both burials are pretty much what you would expect from late Iron Age or Roman burials.

Making Way for a Water Supply Security Pipe

Although the site being excavated is a 15m-wide strip, which is being prepared for a pipeline to be laid, the Roman villa is thought to extend much further and part of it is likely to be buried beneath the village of Bredons Norton. Geophysical surveys will have to be carried out to establish the exact layout of the villa.

The pipe is being laid as part of the Gloucester security water supply pipeline, managed by Severn Trent Water.

Evidence of Roman Salt Industry Discovered in Thames Estuary

The mouth of the river Thames has been the site of several Roman and Iron Age discoveries in recent weeks bringing to light evidence of early industrial activity in Britain. The structures include a fourth century Roman kiln used for processing salt water as part of the Roman salt-producing industry, as well as a Roman-era salt-house, boathouse and roundhouse.

These structures were uncovered during a series of excavations near Mucking Creek and Coryton in Essex, which are taking place before the area is prepared for the new London Gateway port Britain’s first deep-sea container port and logistics centre.

Salt would have been a very important commodity for people living in this boom location. The dig has provided a number of important finds that reveal the rich history of the area.

The mud flats at the mouth of the Thames were the heart of the Roman salt industry in Britain. This peaked in the first and second centuries AD, according to Katrina Anker from Oxford Archaeology, the organisation leading the dig. She told Culture24 that at that time, London would still have been in its very early stages of development: Salt would have been a very important commodity for people living in this boom location. The dig has provided a number of important finds that reveal the rich history of the area.

Salt of the Earth

Salt was essential to the Roman economy and society it was used for preserving meat and fish, for tanning and also in the omnipresent spicy fish sauce (garum). It is thought that salaries were sometimes paid, at least partially, in salt or salt tokens and the Romans built roads and ports specifically to ensure the provision and transportation of salt. The settlement of Ostia (before it became Rome’s major port) was built near salt flats, while the via Salaria the salt road stretching from Rome to the Adriatic coast of Italy was also named after the commodity transported along it.

However, rises in the level of the Mediterranean caused huge problems for the Roman salt supply because many of the salt flats were put out of action including those at Ostia. This is when salt production in Britain became more important.

Cheshire, with its brine springs, was an important salt-producing area for the Romans as it still is today for the British salt industry.

From around 80 AD, the Fenland area of Britain, including the Essex coast and the Thames estuary, became an important source of salt for the Romans, who built roads, towns and ports there. The archaeological discoveries have thrown up new evidence of this industry, which would have provided salt for use in the tanneries supplying leather goods to the Roman army in Britain.

Photo by tallpomlin.