Tesserae used to make a mosaic floor |
In 2012 Lottery funding provided money for a new award winning conservation building which was erected to cover and protect a section of the villa, which greatly improves the visitor experience. With raised walkways, people can marvel at the mosaics, imagine the finely painted walls in the numerous rooms, discover how the Roman central heating worked and get a much better idea of the luxurious living of the very wealthy, in Roman times.
The new conservation building |
The villa's existence was supposedly discovered by accident in 1864 when a gamekeeper ferreting for rabbits found tesserae in the ground around a burrow. Realising that this could be an important discovery he reported his find to the landowner Lord Eldon and the digging started with great enthusiasm. Victorian archaeology wasn't as thorough as today and detailed records were not made, so unfortunately there are gaps in our knowledge which wouldn't have happened if the dig had taken place more recently.
An artists impression of how Chedworth Roman Villa looked c. AD 350 |
Site map showing location of Chedworth Roman Villa to the Roman Roads and Cirencester |
A site information board shows the location of other villas in the area at the time, and shows how close they were to the Fosse Way - the military road built by the Romans to link Exeter with Lincoln which ran through Cirencester, the 2nd largest Roman town after London. Chedworth villa, the best surviving villa in the area was built in a very sheltered valley, it had a good water supply, being close to springs spouting water from the nearby hill and it faced south. Just little way away, the River Coln flowed towards the river Thames.
The Visitor Centre, Café and Shop |