Lullingstone Roman Villa is a villa built during the Roman occupation of Britain, situated in Lullingstone near the village of Eynsford in Kent, south-eastern England. The villa is located in the Darent Valley, along with six others, including those at Crofton, Crayford and Dartford. Constructed in the 1st century, perhaps around AD 80–90, the house was repeatedly expanded and occupied until it was destroyed by fire in the 4th or 5th century. The villa was occupied over various periods within the Romano-British period, but after its destruction, it is only thought to have been reoccupied during the medieval period. The occupants were most likely wealthy Romans or native Britons who had adopted Roman customs.
Some evidence found on site suggests that around 150, the villa was considerably enlarged and may have been used as the country retreat of the governors of the Roman province of Britannia. Two sculpted marble busts found in the cellar may be those of Pertinax, governor in 185–186, and his father-in-law, Publius Helvius Successus. In the 4th century a room, probably already in religious use, was converted to a Christian chapel or house church, the earliest known in the British Isles.
In the Anglo-Saxon period, the ruins of a Roman temple-mausoleum on the site of the villa were incorporated into a Christian chapel (Lullingstone Chapel) that was extant at the time of the Norman Conquest, one of the earliest known chapels in the country.
In addition to the pagan shrine in the villa's chapel and the dining room mosaics, the villa produced significant artistic finds including the Lullingstone Victory Gem and the busts.
The earliest part of the villa was built around AD 82. It was situated in an area near several other villas, and was close to Watling Street, a Roman road by which travellers could move to and from Londinium, Durobrivae, Durovernum Cantiacorum, and the major Roman port of Rutupiae (i.e., London, Rochester, Canterbury, and Richborough, respectively).
Around 150 AD the villa was expanded and a heated bath block with hypocaust was added, but it was later rebuilt around 290 AD after being abandoned for almost a century. Two marble busts from the 2nd century found in the cellar perhaps depict the owners or residents of the villa, which may have been the designated country retreat of the provincial governors. There is some evidence that the busts are those of Pertinax, governor of Britannia in 185–186 (and later Roman emperor in 193), and his father.
In the 3rd century, a larger furnace for the hypocaust as well as an expanded bath block were added, as were a temple-mausoleum and a large granary. In the 4th century, the dining room was equipped with a fine mosaic floor with one illustration of Zeus or Jupiter, disguised as a bull, abducting Europa and a second depicting Bellerophon killing the Chimera.
Source: Pleiades — A Community-Built Gazetteer and Graph of Ancient Places. View the Pleiades record →
Lullingstone Roman Villa is a villa built during the Roman occupation of Britain, situated in Lullingstone near the village of Eynsford in Kent, south-eastern England. It is recorded in the Pleiades gazetteer of ancient places as a villa site from the Roman period in Britain.
Lullingstone is classified as a Roman villa — a civilian site in the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer. Roman Britain's archaeology encompasses thousands of sites ranging from legionary fortresses and marching camps to villas, temples and towns.
Several Roman sites lie within a short distance, including Manor House Roman villa (2.2 km), Farningham (2.3 km), Franks Roman villa (3.3 km). Aubrey Research maps over 2,200 Roman sites across Britain, drawn from the Pleiades ancient world gazetteer.
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