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MONUMENT NO. 335107

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A Roman C2nd-C4th AD winged corridor villa, first reported in 1824, was also partially excavated in the 1960's and in 2005. The north and east wings of the villa have shown as cropmarks on aerial photographs. The site is also known from an extensive surface scatter of roman material, including tessarae and tiles. Roman material has also been found on the surface circa 150m to the north west (see SP 33 SE 17, 335126).

The villa was partially excavated by Skelton and the Reverend C Winstanley in 1824. Two rooms were uncovered, one with a "triangular apse" and hypocaust heating. The latter had a "good geometric pavement of treble plait and a floral arrangement" . A series of excavations were also carried out in the 1960's and a plan of part of the north range of buildings, which contained a remarkable range of good quality mosaics, has been published. Part of the northwestern corner and the west wing of the villa were also excavated in 2005.

Cropmarks show that the villa probably extended to the south of the excavated parts of the site and there is at least one clear building (or a different phase of development of the site). There are multiple ditched boundaries and possible enclosures which may have once surrounded all or part of the main villa buildings. A pair of cropmark enclosures (see 1437505 and 1566597) are situated further to the south, a further enclosure (1569744) is located to the east of the villa. There is the possibility that these may be a precursors to the villa. Ridge and furrow (see 1437507) in the field to the east of the main villa buildings has probably masked this part of the site on aerial photographs since the 1940's, and pasture in more recent years has also limited the possibility of the formation of cropmarks of the underlying villa.

This site has been mapped from aerial photographs as part of the South East Warwickshire and Cotswolds HLS Target Areas National Mapping Programme.

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(SP 39363356) Roman Remains, coins etc. found (NR) (AD 1824) (1)

Roman Villa (Site of) (NAT) (2)

A Roman Villa at SP 394337, first discovered in 1824 and partly excavated by Skelton and the Rev. C. Wistanley (see plan) (3). Further excavations in 1965-6 were carried out by E. Greenfield for MOW, revealing a winged corridor villa of 2nd-4th centuries AD with heated rooms and tessellated pavements. There were at least two main phases of occupation and the villa was greatly reduced in the late 4th century. A large V-shaped ditch running north to south beneath a metalled surface east of the west range of the villa was located. This had replaced two smaller ones, of which one can be dated circa AD.50. The large ditch contained artifacts from circa AD.50-150. (It is assumed that Greenfield's excavation approximates to the OS siting. DOE was contacted by telephone but could not confirm this assumption). (3-4)

There is nothing to confirm the specific siting of the building though a general scatter of red and white tessarae and fragmented flue tile overlies the indicated area. (5)

OX 64 Listed as the site of a Roman villa. (6-7)

Roman material has also been found on the surface circa 150m to the north west (see SP 33 SE 17, 335126). The 1960's excavations are unpublished but a plan has been published in Henig and Booth "Roman Oxfordshire" (2000). Part of the northwestern corner and the west wing of the villa were also excavated in 2005 but details are not known.
(8)

The villa has been recorded as a cropmark on only one occasion, in 1996 (see source 9-10). The fields around the villa were photographed in August 2005 (see source 11) and record the extent of the area stripped of topsoil and the locations of the back-filled trenches from the excavations carried out by an amateur archaeology group. The crop conditions were not right for the villa to show at this time as the fields around the villa had been harvested or were under pasture.

The villa shows as cropmarks of two linear arrangements of cropmarks extending SSW-NNE for 61m (centred at SP 3932 3354) and NNW-SSE for 76m (centred at SP 3933 3351). The site has been transcribed at 1:2500 scale. The transcription of the north wing corresponds well with the 1960 excavation plan published in Henig and Booth "Roman Oxfordshire" (2000). The location of part of the western, NW-SE orientated, wing of the villa are also indicated on aerial photographs by the backfilled trenches from the 2005 excavations (centred at SP 3929 3350).

There are blocks of cropmarks which may indicate the location of compacted surfaces, such as mosaic or rubble floors, or areas where walls or hypocausts have collapsed. This can be noted in particular at the location of the room with the "triangular apse", described in the 19th century excavations, located at the northeast corner of the villa (SP 3934 3355).

A large area of what appeared to be compacted surface extends between the northern and eastern wings of the villa. This is centred at SP 3933 3351 and extends over an area measuring 45m by 34m, bounded to the east by the east wing of the villa but less well defined on the western side. It is possible that this represents the remains of a central area, perhaps a garden. Alternatively it could indicate that the villa is being damaged by ploughing and that a spread of masonry and other material has been dragged by the plough from the buildings across the site. The concentrated nature of the spread of the material suggests the former explanation is more plausible.

There are further cropmarks in the field to the south of the villa which may represent outbuildings and a ditched enclosure associated with the villa. In particular a well defined building measuring 30.4m by 12.4m, centred at SP 3940 3340, could even be part of the villa complex itself or perhaps the remains of a large barn or range of outbuildings. A number of ditches to the east and west of this building hint at the remains of a large double ditched enclosure which, if comparable to other villas in southern England, may have once surrounded the the site of the villa. However they are showing in too fragmentary a way to come to any clear conclusions fromt he cropmarks alone.

Ridge and furrow (see SP 33 SE 45, 1437507) in the field to the east of the main villa buildings and has masked this part of the site, on aerial photographs, since the 1940's. This field has been in pasture in more recent years also limiting the possibility of the formation of cropmarks of the underlying villa. There are, however, two scarps (visible on source 12) which may be associated with the western extents of the villa, the limits of which which were thought to have been identified in the 2005 excavations. However the scarps could be natural features and until a proper investigation is carried out their function, if they had any, will remain unclear. These extend roughly north-south, parallel to the villa wings, for 85m and 82m and are centred at SP 3923 3350 and SP 3926 3352 respectively.

A later prehistoric or Roman enclosure (see SP 33 SE 44, 1437504) is situated to the south of the whole villa complex and appears to be on a similar alignement. This could be a coincidence or it could indicate the enclosure may have been a "proto-villa", as found elsewhere in Oxfordshire, or it could be contemporary to the villa.

Full details, a plan and a report of the aerial photographic transcription can be found at the NMR.
(9-12)

Wigginton Roman villa and Iron Age enclosure, 300m north east of the Church of St Giles have been designated as scheduled ancient monuments on 24th February 2011. (13)

The site is as described by the above authorities. One of the scarps mentioned above by authority 9-12 has been mapped. This has been suggested to be associated with the limits of the villa or possibly a natural feature. A possible waterhole is located at SP 39281 33334.

A trackway which extends broadly east-west across the north of the villa is in a parallel arc with the orientation of the ridge and furrow. It is likely to be medieval or post-medieval, and had been recorded separately (NMR monument number 1569741).

A probable barn, or other outbuilding which is likely to be related to the villa is defined by the cropmarks of buried wall foundations, located at SP 39401 33401. It measures 32 metres long by 15 metres wide, and is surrounded by a series of parallel and intersecting boundary ditches, suggesting paddocks or similar.

A rectilinear enclosure was located just to the east of the villa site, and has been newly recorded as (NMR monument number 1569744).

A curvilinear enclosure (NMR monument record 1566597) is located just south of the square enclosure (NMR monument record 1437504) mentioned above by authority 9 to 12. This site has been mapped from aerial photographs as part of the South East Warwickshire and Cotswolds HLS Target Areas National Mapping Programme (14).

SOURCE TEXT

( 1) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

OS 25" 1898

( 2) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

OS 6" 1955

( 3) Salzman, L.F. (ed) 1939 The Victoria history of the county of Oxford, Volume I

The Victoria history of the counties of England Page(s)309

( 4) General reference

Cake & Cockhorse 3 1965-8 pp36, 68, 164 (E Greenfield)

( 5) Field Investigators Comments

F1 ANK 05-DEC-70

( 6) by Eleanor Scott 1993 A gazetteer of Roman villas in Britain

Leicester archaeology monographsNo.1 (1993) - no.1 Page(s)163

(7) General reference

Beesley A 1848 History of Banbury pp41-3

(8) RCHME/EH Aerial Photographers Comment

Helen Winton\10-JAN-2006\EH: Wigginton Villa Aerial Photographic transcription and analysis

(9) Oblique aerial photograph reference number

NMR SP 3933/3-7 (15470/07-11) 27-JUN-1996

(10) Oblique aerial photograph reference number

NMR SP 3933/9-17 (15455/24-32) 27-JUN-1996

(11) Oblique aerial photograph reference number

NMR SP 3933/20-25 (24019/01/06) 08-AUG-2005

(12) Vertical aerial photograph reference number

RAF CPE/UK/1929 3148-9 16-JAN-1947

(13) Scheduled Monument Notification

24-FEB--2011

(14) RCHME/EH Aerial Photographers Comment

Russell Priest/07-AUG-2012/ South East Warwickshire and Cotswolds HLS Target Areas NMP

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