The find was described by Historic England as 'unparalleled in recent years'
PA
Digging it... experts spent 8 days excavating after a complete mosaic was found in the garden PA
By GEORGE HARRISON
17:17, 17 Apr 2016
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A MAN in the South West uncovered an “extraordinarily well-preserved” Roman villa on his property whilst working on a barn conversion.
Whilst laying electric cables in his garden, the surprised homeowner unearthed an untouched mosaic in his back garden.
Rug designer Luke Irwin stumbled upon the remarkable find whilst he was working on converting his barn into a table tennis room for his kids.
video Roman villa unearthed in Wiltshire thumbnail
Roman villa unearthed in Wiltshire
roman
The villa is one of the largest ever found in the UK PA
And further excavations in the garden, in Brixton Deverill near Warminster, unearthed a find described by Historic England as “unparalleled in recent years.”
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An eight day dig revealed that one of the country’s largest Roman villas had been hidden beneath the garden for centuries.
Experts uncovered hundreds of oyster shells and “extremely high status pottery” on the site, suggesting that villa was owned by a very wealthy family.
Animal bones, coins and pieces of luxury jewellery were also found, pointing to the extreme wealth of its former inhabitants.
roman villa
The eight day dig unearthed oysters, pottery, coins and jewellery PA
Dr David Roberts, of Historic England, said: “We've found a whole range of artefacts demonstrating just how luxurious a life that was led by the elite family that would have lived at the villa.
“It's clearly not your run-of-the-mill domestic settlement.”
oyster
Oyster shells found at the site suggest the residents had expensive tastes PA
Archaeologists also made a sinister revelation about a stone planter used by Mr Irwin to hold geraniums in his garden.
It turned out that the planter, which had been a fixture in the garden for years, was actually a Roman child’s coffin.
coffin
This 'planter' turned out to be a Roman child's coffin PA
The villa, which was built at some point between AD 175 and 220, had "not been touched since its collapse 1,400 years ago,” according to Dr Roberts.
He also said that the site was of “enormous importance,” adding: “Without question, this is a hugely valuable site in terms of research, with incredible potential.
“It's one of the best sites I have ever had the chance to work on.”
PA
Digging it... experts spent 8 days excavating after a complete mosaic was found in the garden PA
By GEORGE HARRISON
17:17, 17 Apr 2016
comments
0
A MAN in the South West uncovered an “extraordinarily well-preserved” Roman villa on his property whilst working on a barn conversion.
Whilst laying electric cables in his garden, the surprised homeowner unearthed an untouched mosaic in his back garden.
Rug designer Luke Irwin stumbled upon the remarkable find whilst he was working on converting his barn into a table tennis room for his kids.
video Roman villa unearthed in Wiltshire thumbnail
Roman villa unearthed in Wiltshire
roman
The villa is one of the largest ever found in the UK PA
And further excavations in the garden, in Brixton Deverill near Warminster, unearthed a find described by Historic England as “unparalleled in recent years.”
READ MORE:
What the hell? Couple film 'dust devil' twister in Wiltshire
The secret ‘Nazi’ buildings that hide in plain sight... if you take a look on Google Earth
Justin Bieber gets kicked out of famous Mexican archeological site
An eight day dig revealed that one of the country’s largest Roman villas had been hidden beneath the garden for centuries.
Experts uncovered hundreds of oyster shells and “extremely high status pottery” on the site, suggesting that villa was owned by a very wealthy family.
Animal bones, coins and pieces of luxury jewellery were also found, pointing to the extreme wealth of its former inhabitants.
roman villa
The eight day dig unearthed oysters, pottery, coins and jewellery PA
Dr David Roberts, of Historic England, said: “We've found a whole range of artefacts demonstrating just how luxurious a life that was led by the elite family that would have lived at the villa.
“It's clearly not your run-of-the-mill domestic settlement.”
oyster
Oyster shells found at the site suggest the residents had expensive tastes PA
Archaeologists also made a sinister revelation about a stone planter used by Mr Irwin to hold geraniums in his garden.
It turned out that the planter, which had been a fixture in the garden for years, was actually a Roman child’s coffin.
coffin
This 'planter' turned out to be a Roman child's coffin PA
The villa, which was built at some point between AD 175 and 220, had "not been touched since its collapse 1,400 years ago,” according to Dr Roberts.
He also said that the site was of “enormous importance,” adding: “Without question, this is a hugely valuable site in terms of research, with incredible potential.
“It's one of the best sites I have ever had the chance to work on.”
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