More information : (SO 83960311) ROMAN VILLA (R) (Site of) (1)
The existence of the pavements of the Woodchester Roman villa was first noted in 1693 (2). They were uncovered by Edmund Brown in 1712 and 1722, and drawings made by Richard Bradley. During the remainder of the 18th century much damage was done by burials in the churchyard beneath which the remains lay (3). In 1793 excavations by Samuel Lysons revealed a sumptuous courtyard villa of 64 rooms grouped around inner and outer courts. The building sequence is unknown, but the famous Orpheus mosaic, nearly 49 ft square, probably dates from the 4th century (4). Finds, included coins from Hadrian to Valens (5). The floors were reburied by Lysons (6), and are uncovered for public inspection every few years (4). Finds from the villa and vicinity are preserved in Stroud Museum. (2-7)
There are no visible remains of the villa (some Ro brick is built into the ruins of the church nearby SO 80 SW9). The site of the Orpheus mosaic is indicated on the OS 25" and consists of a sunken rectangle 11.0m x 13.0m in the churcyard; grass covered. (8)
Excavations in 1973 revealed what seems to have been the eastern range of the outer courtyard, and confirmed a long and complex history for the villa, with evidence of building activity in the
2nd, 3rd and 4th centuries. Very little Roman material was found
in "Lawn Field", west of the villa; just a few sherds and the well known stone water channel which feeds a well north of the villa and has always been presumed Roman, though it could be later. (9)
The excavations in 1973 concentrated on 4 areas; beneath the great pavement, in the west range of the inner courtyard, on a previoulsy undiscovered east range and an area to the west of the villa. Based on this evidence a hypothetical development sequence was advanced. In this the villa, at its founding in the late 1st or early 2nd Century, comprise the rooms that later formed the south eastern side of the courtyard. This nucleus was later extended on the north western side. This extension was then demolished in the 1st half of the 4th Century when 3 ranges were added to form the inner courtyard. The latest datable finds recovered were late 4th Century potsherds and a bronze buckle loop. [Excavation report]. (10)
Detailed description and illustration of the Great Pavement. (11)
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