High Wycombe Roman villa
| High Wycombe Roman villa | |
|---|---|
 The mosaic that once adorned the floor of Room I of the villa in 1933 | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Location | High Wycombe grid reference SU87409239 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 51°37′24.79″N 0°44′19.89″W / 51.6235528°N 0.7388583°W |
| Construction started | 150 |
| Completed | 170 |
| Demolished |
|
High Wycombe Roman villa is a Roman villa and bath house complex located in High Wycombe, England.[1][2]
History
[edit]The villa and bath house complex at High Wycombe was constructed between 150 and 170 and was expanded during the early 4th century; it was inhabited until at least the 4th century, with the latest dateable object discovered at the site being a coin which dates from 320 to 324.[2][3] Despite this, no evidence of the building's destruction was identified.
Some of the roof tiles were re-used in the construction of the Hospital of St John the Baptist between the 1170s and 1180,[4] and much of the ruins of the villa and bath house complex were destroyed between 1855 and 1856 when a modern bath house was constructed on the site.[3]
The Battle of Wycombe Rye is also believed to have been fought on the site of High Wycombe Roman villa during the First English Civil War in 1642.
Excavation
[edit]
Robbers previously removed parts of the floor tiles of the bath house prior to its discovery, and the first of two mosaics was discovered on 1 July 1724 which was initially believed to be Roman pavement.[2] It was excavated by Edward John Payne in 1862 and in the same excavation, Payne discovered fragments of a second mosaic and the isolated tesserae of a third (both believed to have been constructed alongside the villa in the 2nd century)[2] alongside broken fragments of wall plaster.[5]
On 25 April 1932, Francis Colmer excavated the site and located the site where E. J. Payne excavated,[3] and the second mosaic (located in Room I) was also re-discovered, when it was sketched and re-buried in 1933. The site of the complex was then granted to allotments, and as a result of this, the Room I mosaic was slowly destroyed by gardeners who were unaware of its existence; whatever remained was destroyed during building work on the site during the early 1950s.[2]
The site was extensively excavated during 1954–55 and the layout of the villa was established, along with the discovery of the bath house, which was also extensively excavated.[2]
The villa was last excavated in 2002,[4] when in situ wall plaster was discovered at the site.
References
[edit]- ^ Historic England. "Monument No. 248726". Research records (formerly PastScape).
- ^ a b c d e f Hartley, Brian R. (1959), "A Romano-British villa at High Wycombe." (PDF), Records of Buckinghamshire, vol. 16, no. 4, Buckinghamshire Archaeological Society
- ^ a b c "High Wycombe Roman Villa". www.roman-britain.co.uk. Retrieved 26 September 2024.
- ^ a b "High Wycombe". heritageportal.buckinghamshire.gov.uk. Retrieved 26 September 2024.
- ^ Payne, Edward John (1867), "Roman Villa at Wycombe", Records of Buckinghamshire, vol. 3, Buckinghamshire Archaeological Society, pp. 160–164
