| Summary : Site of a Roman villa at Denton. The site was first discovered in 1727 when ploughing uncovered a tessellated floor and wall foundations, an event recorded by William Stukeley. Further examination occurred in 1800. More substantial excavations occurred in 1948-9 and 1959, before the site was destroyed by ironstone workings. The excavations have uncovered a sequence of buildings, including villa, bath house and well, the latter containing much building debris in its fill, as well as pottery, animal remains and pieces of buckets. Inhumations from the villa and human remains from the bath house are suggested to be of Saxon date, possibly 6th century. The villa and other buildings appear to belong mainly to the 4th century AD. |
More information : [SK 87593094] ROMAN VILLA [GS] (Site of) (1)
Roman Tesselated Pavement found A.D.1727 [T.I.] (2)
The villa is known through Stukeley's discovery, in 1727, of a
Roman tessellated pavement and again, in 1800 of William
Fowler's find of a second mosaic.
Threatened by ironstone working, the site was excavated by J.T.
Smith for the Ministry of Works in 1948-9.
Occupation was mainly late 4th century, when a basilican-type
villa of at least seven rooms with simple tessellated floors
was built. The have had a central hearth and a cobbled
approach at the east end. A large room at the west end was
floored with the pavement uncovered in 1727. Post-holes, but no
wooden walls were seen.
of 24 coins found, 17 are A.D.364-83. A coin of Valens was
found under one of the pavements.
Two bodies had been buried in the abandoned house, one
associated with a piece of early 6th century Anglian pottery.
A well-built detached "row-type" bath-house, 34ft. E-W and
19ftN-S, some 300 to 400ft. south of the villa, was excavated by
E. Greenfield for the Ministry of Works in 1959, before the
site was completely destroyed by ironstone working.
[AO/LP/63/303].
A square well was found 30 ft to the south, and there were
other features to the east.
The bath house was probably contemporary with the villa. (3-7)
Lincoln Museum hold a representative collection of finds from
this site. (8)
Full Excavation Report. (9,10)
Included in Scott's Gazetteer (11)
Additional source (12)
Denton mosaics are described and images reproduced in source (13)
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