Roman Villa at Brixton Deverill

Summary

Roman villa, dating from the mid-C2 to mid-C4, also with evidence of pre- and post-Roman activity.

Reasons for Designation

Brixton Deverill Roman Villa is scheduled for the following principal reasons:

* Survival: this is an important and well-preserved Roman villa which survives in the form of substantial archaeological remains beneath the present ground surface, including a good-quality mosaic dating from the mid-C4AD;
* Potential: archaeological investigations have demonstrated the excellent preservation of the remains which will provide further valuable information about the villa’s phases and methods of construction and the lifestyles of its inhabitants. The discovery of pre- and post-Roman remains offers the opportunity to study the continuity of settlement in this location over a long time span and enhances the significance of the monument;
* Diversity: the site retains a diverse range of features such as the remains of the main villa building, a probable bath house suite, ancillary structures and rich buried deposits;
* Documentation: geophysical survey and targeted excavation have secured a high level of archaeological documentation.

History

Romano-British villas were constructed throughout the period of Roman occupation, from the 1st to the 4th centuries AD. They are amongst the most characteristic settlements of the Roman period, distinguished by an adoption of Roman traits such as rectilinear building types featuring wall-paintings, mosaics, hypocausts and bath suites. They often formed the focus of extensive rural estates, alongside domestic, agricultural and occasionally industrial buildings. A typical villa took the form of a well-appointed house, usually rectangular, with an adjoining or separate bath suite, and a number of ancillary buildings with associated yards and enclosures. Most were partly or wholly stone built, and some may have featured an upper storey. They are usually complex structures occupied over several hundred years and continually remodelled to fit changing circumstances.

Villas could serve a wide variety of uses alongside agricultural activities, including administrative, recreational and craft activities, and this is reflected in the considerable diversity in their plan. Although some were probably built by settlers from the wider Roman Empire, many are thought to have been built by the native elite, often sited on or nearby earlier Iron Age farmsteads. Villas are amongst the most characteristic settlements of the Roman period, distinguished by an adoption of Roman traits such as rectilinear building types featuring wall-paintings, mosaics, hypocausts and bath suites. They often formed the focus of extensive rural estates, alongside domestic, agricultural and occasionally industrial buildings. A typical villa took the form of a well-appointed house, usually rectangular, with an adjoining or separate bath suite, and a number of ancillary buildings with associated yards and enclosures. Most were partly or wholly stone built, and some may have featured an upper storey. Frequently there is evidence for later extensions and alterations.

The site at Brixton Deverill was first identified in 2015 when part of a Roman mosaic was discovered during the excavation of a cable trench. The exposed mosaic was recorded and then backfilled. The site was subsequently the subject of archaeological survey and excavation in 2015 which confirmed the presence of a substantial winged corridor villa facing onto a courtyard, together with additional buildings and associated enclosures. The excavation revealed that, despite the robbing of some stone and other materials, both during the Roman period and after abandonment, there was a good survival of buried structural remains. Dateable finds indicate that the villa was a particularly high-status site which was built sometime between 175 AD and 220 AD and which underwent several phases of construction, being successively remodelled through to the mid-C4AD. The principal villa building appears to have undergone some partial dismantling in an organised manner sometime in the later C4AD, though some parts may have been re-occupied during the following century, as suggested by the presence of later structures added within the north wing. Some evidence was also found for the occupation of the site prior to the construction of the villa, and also further post-Roman activities; including some episodic robbing of the villa walls, and two areas of medieval/post-medieval ridge and furrow identified by geophysical survey.

Further survey work and excavation were carried out in the immediate vicinity of the villa site in November 2016 (Faulkner). Three small, shallow trial trenches were excavated in a wooded area to the east of the villa, though only loose building debris, a length of possible robbed-out wall and artefacts interpreted as possible fragments of Roman brick and tesserae and two probable pottery sherds were uncovered.

Details

PRINCIPAL ELEMENTS
The monument includes the buried remains of a Roman villa situated on well-drained chalk land in the valley of the River Wylye. A Roman road is also located on Pertwood Down, some 2km to the south-east. The principal building at Brixton Deverill has been interpreted as either a large winged corridor villa with outbuildings or a double courtyard villa. Slight earthworks are also evident, but it is unclear if they relate to the villa, or later farming or drainage activities.

DETAILS
The location of the principal villa building has been confirmed through geophysical survey and excavation (2015). It features a western range, orientated north-east to south-west, and linked wings at either end that project eastwards and together they define three sides of a courtyard. The excavation revealed that, despite the robbing of some stone and other materials, sections of the walls survived up to 1.06m high in places, and in places the wall lines were marked by neatly-cut robber trenches. The walls are variously built of stone rubble, chalk cobbles and roughly-faced chalk and limestone blocks; plaster was evident on the internal walls. The presence of a broad chalk surface on the top of the walls within one of the excavation trenches may represent the base for the timber-framed superstructure of the building. In-situ floor surfaces were also uncovered.

The west range is approximately 38.5m long and 16m wide, with an ancillary room attached to its western side. The western extent of the range is, however, unclear as the trench for a modern water pipe has cut through it and may have been subjected to agricultural disturbance and truncation. The east end of the north wing could not be positively identified, perhaps due to robbing and agricultural disturbance, and may extend beyond the survey area. The broader, and more complex, south wing (referred to as ‘central’ in the 2017 Historic England Excavation and Analysis report) was found to retain evidence for a number of stone-founded rooms, including a possible bath suite. At least two apsidal walls and hypocaust pilae for underfloor heating were identified during the survey, along with a circular projection which may be a plunge pool. Geophysical survey data suggests that the south wing extends the furthest, with at least one further building attached to the east. The western part of the south wing similarly may have been subject to some robbing and ground disturbance from later activities such as farming, while the trench for a modern water pipe has cut through the west range.

Geophysical survey identified further rectilinear features, possibly additional buildings, to the south of the principal building which, together with the south wing of the main building, appear to define a second courtyard. One of these structures, in which the mosaic floor was discovered, is situated at the south-east corner of the south range and has a slightly different orientation. It appears to intersect with the latter and may represent a different phase of construction. The area of mosaic flooring was uncovered within this building. The mosaic comprised a guilloche pattern of rows of orange clay tesserae as well as white and grey coloured tesserae and is considered to date from the mid-C4AD.

The excavation demonstrated excellent preservation of bone and other faunal remains, with some high-status features, such as the relatively high prevalence of sheep and pig compared to cattle, and the presence of chicken bones and hunted game. Large quantities of oyster shells were recovered which would have had to be transported from the coast. Other finds included fragments of Roman glass, tesserae, wall plaster; some with traces of red monochrome decoration, and metalwork such as coins. A large and diverse assemblage of Roman pottery, including British and European wares, was also recovered.

Evidence recovered during the investigations also indicated pre- and post-Roman activity. Geophysical survey identified a probable roundhouse which appears to have been truncated by the south wing of the villa. A quantity of Iron Age pottery was also recovered, indicating that the site was probably occupied before the villa was constructed. The presence of timber structures and possible C5 pottery within the partly-ruined principal villa building has been interpreted as evidence that the site was occupied to some extent during this later period. Slight earthworks are visible within the field in which the villa is situated and some, which appear to run up to the external edge of the buildings, may relate to medieval or post-medieval cultivation.

Geophysical survey did not identify any clear evidence of further archaeological features in the areas to the north-east, east and south-east of the main complex. The location of the mosaic, however, appears to indicate that further buried archaeological deposits associated with the villa may be present to the east and south-east, but the character and extent of any remains in these areas has not been established.

EXCLUSIONS
All fencing and gates, goal posts, boundary walls, concrete kerbs to raised beds, the greenhouse, timber shed and the surfaces of all paths are excluded from the scheduling but the ground beneath these features is, however, included.


EXTENT OF SCHEDULING
The area of protection is based on current evidence and understanding arising from the results of the 2015 geophysical survey, excavation and the location of the area of mosaic floor. We do not have sufficient evidence to demonstrate the survival of nationally-important below-ground archaeology beyond what has currently been identified, particularly in the area to the east of the scheduled monument. Should evidence of further archaeological survival and potential come to light the extent of the scheduling may be reconsidered.

Sources

Other
MWI74834 Roman Villa at Bridgewalk House identifed by a geophysical survey, Wiltshire Historic Environment Record
MWI74835 Ridge and Furrow, Bridgewalk House, Wiltshire Historic Environment Record
Sabin, D and Donaldson, K, 2016, Bridgewalk House Roman Villa, Brixton Deverill, Wiltshire; Ground Penetrating Radar and Magnetometry Report
Historic England, 2017 (unpublished), Excavation and Analysis; Evaluation of the Deverill villa; Brixton Deverill, Wiltshire, Assessment Report and UPD
N Faulkner, D Wood and M Barham, 2017, Survey Report – Deverill Roman Villa

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