Bradford-on-Avon Roman Villa

Summary

The Roman villa at Bradford-on-Avon has a very good survival of buried features dating from the mid-to late Roman and post-Roman periods. It provides a valuable index of the extent and degree to which native British society became Romanised, and illustrates the agrarian and economic history of the area during the Roman period.

Reasons for Designation

The Roman villa to the north-west of Bradford-on-Avon town centre is scheduled for the following principal reasons:

* Survival: the site survives well in the form of buried archaeological deposits and structural remains. The mosaic is an important example of late Roman art in Britain which, together with finds such as painted wall plaster, provides a fascinating insight into the wealth and status of the villa’s occupants;
* Potential: further buried deposits will increase our understanding of the character and occupation of the site during the Roman and post-Roman period;
* Diversity: for its two principal buildings which had very different functions, one representing high-status domestic accommodation and the other being used for an agri-industrial purposes, its bath suite, and several smaller structures;
* Rarity: the possible adaptation of part of the villa to a baptistry may represent the first known evidence in C5 Britain of the conversion of a such site for Christian worship;
* Documentation: the level of documentation resulting from archaeological investigations has contributed greatly to our understanding of the monument.

History

Romano-British villas were constructed throughout the period of Roman occupation, from the C1 to AD C4. They are amongst the most characteristic settlements of the period, distinguished by the adoption of Roman traits such as rectilinear building types featuring wall paintings, mosaics, hypocausts, and bath suites. Most villas are considered to have been owned by affluent descendants of the native population, and often formed the focus for extensive rural estates, alongside domestic, agricultural, and occasionally industrial buildings. Many villa sites show a gradual development over time, being remodelled to fit changing circumstances, and in most cases, they show a decline in the quality of occupation before they ceased to be occupied, with well-appointed domestic rooms often being turned to industrial activities.

A bath house was first identified at this location in Bradford-on-Avon in the 1970s and was excavated in 1976. From this time the presence of a villa was assumed, with nearby finds of lead and marble coffins, coins, and pottery supporting the theory. In 1999 parch marks and aerial photography to the north of the bath house identified the below-ground remains of a south-facing winged corridor villa with a colonnade to its principal (south) side and at least 15 rooms, including a large, central apsed room. From the south-west and south-east corners linear ranges extended southwards, with the bath house attached to the south end of the south-west range. The full extent of the south-east range and whether it had a corresponding bath house cannot be established as this area was developed for housing in the mid-C20. A geophysical survey undertaken by the University of Bristol in 2000 revealed a second large building to the west which was found to be of near identical size and plan as the winged corridor villa but without attendant ranges.

Excavations between 2002 and 2004 identified an initial phase of construction in the mid to late C3. Villas in the south-west established during this period are often ascribed to the migration of the Gallic elite in the face of increasing insecurity on the Continent, and this may be such an example. The villa complex was found to have undergone a major phase of rebuilding and modification in the C4, possibly following a fire.

The winged corridor villa was identified as a high-status dwelling with a colonnaded entrance front, sumptuous facilities (including its bath house), and lavish internal decoration in the form of a mosaic and wall paintings. The almost identical building to the west had the same grand exterior but no internal decoration, and it served various agri-industrial functions. The excavations revealed that the dwelling was modified in the early C5, when part of the dwelling appears to have become a baptistry. It has been suggested (Corney, 2015) that this may represent the earliest evidence from C5 Britain of the conversion of a Roman villa to a Christian place of worship.

Details

The buried remains of a Roman villa built in the mid-to late C3 with a major phase of rebuilding in the C4. There is also evidence relating to probable Christian worship on the site during the C5.

PRINCIPAL ELEMENTS: the monument includes the buried remains of a Roman villa complex of approximately 2ha and comprising two principal buildings, one a high-status house (east building) and the other (west building) used for agri-industrial purposes, a bath house, and other ancillary buildings. It is situated on a limestone plateau above the steep-sided valley in which sits Bradford-on-Avon, approximately 1km to the south-east. It has views to the south, across the western end of the Vale of Pewsey and the northern escarpment of Salisbury Plain, and to the east, some 18km away, the western scarp of the Marlborough Downs. The villa dates from the mid-to late C3, with a major phase of rebuilding and refurbishment in the mid-C4 that included the addition of a mosaic within the house. Evidence of a possible baptistry suggests that the house may have been reused in the C5 as a Christian place of worship.

DETAILS: aerial photography, geophysical survey, and excavation have provided clear evidence for the layout of the two principal buildings, built in parallel alignment and each with an almost identical plan of 15 rooms, including a central room with apse. The house (east) includes a bath suite to the south-west. Both buildings face south and measure 38m by 18m with 1m wide walls of local limestone. Evidence was uncovered that they each had a wide central entrance on the south side, comprising two limestone blocks forming a 3.2m wide threshold, with a large limestone block at each end with faint traces of a 0.8m diameter pillar base. Finds of Roman glass and Pennant roof tiles suggest that the colonnaded south front was enclosed, being glazed and roofed.

Despite their matching external appearance and plan, the excavations uncovered evidence of the very different functions of the two buildings. The east building was highly decorative, with painted wall plaster and decorative paint schemes in some rooms and, as part of the second C4 phase, a polychromatic mosaic in its principal central room. The mosaic to the apsidal end of this room retains a central rosette and knot motif with four corners filled with stylised foliage and a cantharus (fountain or basin) flanked by a pair of dolphins facing away. The southern half of the mosaic has been damaged, seemingly in the late Roman period or early post-Roman phase but had included four cushion motifs and a central pane of unknown design. At the centre of this room was a circular stone platform, 5.6m in diameter and edged with dressed limestone blocks, that post-dated the mosaic. It may have been for a font and has been identified as possible evidence for a late- Roman to early post-Roman Christian baptistery, suggesting that the building or part of it may have been used as a church. There is no evidence from the finds for the continued use of the villa site beyond the C5.

The bath house formed the southern end of the south-west range of the house and appears to have had a phased construction, originally built as a detached building in the mid-to late C3 and extended to the north to connect to the villa and to the south by the C4. The frigidarium floors are of carefully-cut Pennant sandstone flags, and at its west end is a 3m square plunge bath with large stone bases surviving to three of the corners. To the south, a narrow room leads into the tepidarium which has a small rectangular bath entered by two steps. The caldarium is to the south with the praefurnium (where water was heated) beyond. Further south, a 15m length of wall and a cobbled surface appear to relate to a service yard.

The west building appears to have an identical footprint and dimensions to the house to the east, but without ranges or a bath house to the south. It has a different character with no evidence of interior decoration and is believed to have had agri-industrial functions (Corney, 2015). One room, possibly a smokehouse, had a hypocaust chamber dug into bedrock and comprising large limestone pilae arranged in an irregular fashion and supporting a crude floor of large Forest Marble slabs. The remains of a large kiln or oven was identified in the central part of the building. A large assemblage of animal bone, principally sheep and cattle, many showing evidence of butchery, was also uncovered, while domestic finds included bone pins and a stone gaming dice.

The buried remains of further buildings include two small square structures immediately adjacent to the west building, each measuring 6m by 6m, and two with rectangular plans further to the south. A small hoard of 21 late-C3 barbarous radiates (crude Roman coins that were privately issued) was found within one of the rectangular buildings. Two of the coins retain casting flash (excess material from the casting process) which suggests that they may have been manufactured on site.

Late-Roman and post-Roman burials have been found at the site, including two infant burials within the west building.

EXTENT OF SCHEDULING: the area of protection is based on current evidence and understanding about the known extent of nationally important archaeological remains. There is insufficient evidence at the present time (2025) to demonstrate the survival of significant below-ground archaeology beyond the core of the villa complex, particularly in the area to the south of the scheduled area.

EXCLUSIONS: the fence posts on the south-eastern boundary of the monument are excluded from the scheduling but the ground beneath these features is, however, included.

Sources

Other
Corney, M, ‘The St Laurence School Villa, Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire: A Late Roman Estate Centre and Early Post-Roman Church’ (2015)
Hawke, S, ‘Beyond the Roman villa. Geophysical survey to the south of the playing field and at Home Field, St Laurence School, Bradford on Avon’ (2020) Bath and Counties Archaeological Society
Edwards, Emily, ‘Bradford on Avon Roman Villa: Survey Report’ (1999) English Heritage
MWI1961, ‘Romano-British Villa, West of Trinity School (now St Laurence)’, (Wiltshire and Swindon Historic Environment Record)

End of official list entry

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