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Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research Group Norfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research GroupNorfolk Archaeology Norfolk Archaeological and Historical Research 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The Norfolk Archaeological & Historical Research Group
Norfolk Archaeological & Historical Research Group N.A.H.R.G. Text Box: Norfolk’s Forgotten Roman Villa Summer Excavations at Gayton Thorpe The Roman Villa at Gayton Thorpe is the most southerly of a chain of Roman villas extending north along the Icknield Way. A total of ten villas are presently known, spaced approximately every 1.5 miles, and terminating at Snettisham. Although some excavations have taken place on these villas, records are very scant and incomplete. The Roman villa at Gayton Thorpe was first noted in 1906. However, it was not until 1922, after deep ploughing brought to the surface large amounts of tesserae and building material, that Mr W. Charlton, working with the support of the Norfolk & Norwich Archaeological Society (NNAS), undertook a large-scale excavation of the site. Charlton had previously undertaken excavations in the county, including the investigation of several round barrows, and had published some of his finds in the British Numismatic Journal. However, the excavation he undertook at Gayton Thorpe appears to have been on a much larger scale than anything he had previously undertaken. Charlton appears to have spent most of the summer of 1922 carrying out a large-scale excavation of the villa. The buildings were far more extensive than any other Roman buildings to have been discovered in the county, with the main range extending to almost two hundred feet in length. Although few small artefacts were discovered Charlton is reported to have found extensive pottery collections and the considerable remains of two high quality mosaic floors. Unfortunately, work was halted later that same year due to the sudden and untimely death of Charlton. With the principal archaeologist now dead, and with a large site still uncovered and open to the elements, the council of the NNAS asked Donald Atkinson of Manchester University if he would be willing to complete the work. Atkinson agreed and, for four weeks the following Easter, Atkinson completed the excavation and recording work begun by Charlton the previous year. Once the work was finished it was decided not to re-bury the entire site but to leave the main room, containing the principal mosaic, uncovered and to undertake certain remedial works on the mosaic itself. To protect the fragile archaeology from the elements a large thatched building was erected over the area at a cost of £90, half coming from the NNAS and half from Captain Birbeck, the landowner. The 1923 Excavations This villa remains one of only a handful of Roman rural masonry buildings in Norfolk that have been excavated and that has a complete plan of the main range of buildings. When Atkinson published his report on the site in the 1927 volume of Norfolk Archaeology (published 1928), it was clear that much had been discovered. The North Block of the villa was shown to be a two-winged corridor design with a central mosaic floor, a possible bath complex was identified in the north wing and evidence was seen of a demolished hypocaust in the south wing. The South Block, which was on a slightly different alignment, was of a simpler design. A small mosaic was found in one of the north rooms and a veranda was also evident on its eastern side. The two blocks, although built separately, were subsequently joined by a small corridor. However, from an archaeological perspective, Atkinson’s report left archaeologists with almost as many questions as it answered. Subsequent to publication of Atkinson’s report the villa was left largely untouched for many decades. In the 1960s it was noted that both the mosaic and the thatched building covering it were in a very poor state of preservation. The building had been used for storage of farm equipment and the local rabbit population had burrowed into, and under, the exposed mosaic. In addition, it was reported that sightseers and visitors had removed many of the loose sections of mosaic as souvenirs. The decision was made to remove the hut and back-fill the excavation. The 2006 Excavations In the early months of 2006 Michael de Bootman, of Heritage Marketing & Publications, and Chris Birks, of Chris Birks Archaeological Services, submitted a project design to English Heritage to re-examine the Gayton Thorpe Villa. It had become known that in September 2006 the site was to be taken out of agriculture under the DEFRA High Level Entry Scheme. One of the principal aims of the project was to examine the state of preservation of the two main mosaics prior to their being taken out of agriculture. In addition it was hoped that these relatively small excavations would provide certain evidence for the phasing or re-modelling of the North block. Alongside this the project also outlined a large scale geophysical survey of the whole site using a combination of resistivity, magnetometry and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) survey methods that was designed to place the villa within its landscape context. With both Atkinson’s and Charlton’s archives having disappeared in the intervening decades it was also hoped that excavation would be able to answer some of the questions posed by the report published in Norfolk Archaeology. After extensive negotiations with English Heritage and the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, permission to work on the site was granted in the early summer. The project began with setting out a 20m x 20m survey grid, with the archaeological team arriving on site on August 12th. Although the first few days were marked by dramatic thunderstorms and cloudbursts all setting up was completed in time for the excavation to begin on the 14th. The team, led by John Shepherd of University College London, opened an initial evaluation trench over one corner of where the main mosaic was recorded to be and, after some hours removing the 1960s backfill, a small preserved section of mosaic was located. Over the following weeks this evaluation trench was expanded to encompass half of the original main room of the villa. Initial expansion of this trench revealed a mixed level of preservation and deterioration. It soon became apparent that, at the end of the 1923 excavation, the edges of the surviving mosaic had been concreted over in an attempt to stabilise the sides of the original trench. This was perhaps part of the initial ‘remedial’ work undertaken by Atkinson. In the years leading up to the 1960s reburial of the site these concrete pads had become fragmented and smashed and had been pushed down into the backfill over the mosaic. Removal of this backfill and associated rubble became a time-consuming and backbreaking task. Once the majority of Atkinson’s backfill was removed the Roman archaeology proved far better preserved than initial site visits had indicated. Although the main mosaic was in relatively poor condition, a lot of it having been displaced by both human and rabbit activity, the main structure of the villa was, in places, intact to a depth of 70cm or 80cm. In addition, the plain tessellated .floors in the corridor to the west of the principal room were revealed to be almost completely intact. At the eastern end of the main trench a large masonry wall, finely constructed of flint and mortar, was uncovered in a very good state of preservation. It also soon became apparent that the report published by Atkinson omitted or failed to mention a number of features. In particular, the robber trench that ran east/west along the southern edge of the principal room was discovered to contain backfill from the early excavation– and was not mentioned anywhere in the published report. In addition, a large cut-through feature on the principal eastern wall that was also excavated in the 1920s was not mentioned. By August 21st work in the main trench had progressed to such an extent that it was decided to open a second trench located above the area where Atkinson recorded the second geometric mosaic. This part of the site had remained under cultivation ever since the original excavation and both English Heritage and the excavation director were keen to establish the level of preservation. Initial excavation, under the guidance of Judy Sims, soon revealed that the Roman archaeology was very shallow indeed and that none of the mosaic, already noted in the 1920s as badly deteriorated, had survived. However, the lack of intact mosaic did allow the team to excavate slightly deeper than either Atkinson or Charlton and, as well as revealing very well preserved standing walls and flint footings, the team were surprised to reveal the intact burial of an infant. After full consultation with the authorities, and prior to the site being opened to the public, the remains were fully excavated and removed to await further analysis. Whilst excavation took place a separate team were, weather permitting, progressing with the full scale geophysical survey. The GPR survey, undertaken by Dr Tim Dennis of the University of Essex, soon yielded very high quality images of both the villa itself and its surrounding buildings. Fieldwalking surveys carried out on the site in the previous decades had led to the suggestion of a detached bathhouse being located to the south-west of the main range and these were soon confirmed by the radar results. In addition, the radar also identified further rooms, missed in the 1920s excavation, and additional walls, boundaries and buildings to the east. These findings were confirmed by the resistivity survey, with the magnetometry adding greater detail to the landscape profile. The GPR survey results also presented the excavation director with a number of possible archaeological features that may well eventually help to place the villa within its landscape setting. In particular, a shallow bowl-like depression was identified to the south-west of the main range of buildings. The radar clearly showed that this feature terminated in a flat square object several metres below the surface, perhaps suggesting a well or capped spring. Such a feature would not be unexpected, the other villas in this chain all being associated with water sources, but, to date, the nearest spring was thought to be located over 500 metres away. If this does eventually prove to be the case then one of the key questions concerning the chosen location for the villa may have been answered. Although the geophysical survey work and fieldwalking will continue on site for several months to come the excavation formally came to an end on Sunday August 27th. The following day, Bank Holiday Monday, the archaeologists opened the site to the public and had displays of finds, geophysics results and Roman craft demonstrations. Although principally aimed at the local population the open day attracted in excess of 1700 people and raised several hundred pounds for local charities. In addition, the team are also planning to continue their community involvement by creating a series of educational packs for local schools, including handling collections, and carrying out a number of local community lectures and talks. Text Box: Q62 INDEX