[TQ 5222 6234] ROMAN VILLA [NR.] (site of) (1) The hypocaust of a probable Roman Villa was discovered in 1947-8 at Shoreham (Long 0 11' 6", Lat. 51 20' 20"), - "much hypocaust tile, red tesserae and mortar. Flint and chalk foundations nearby are cut by the River Darent, and there is much pottery from beneath water level at this point. Probing indicates walls and floors of a building 120 ft. long, 2-4 ft. below turf level."(2). A rotary quern-stone was found in the river bed at TQ 523623. (3) There are no visible remains of this building, sited by Lt. Col. Meates to TQ 5216 6227 (a), and considered by him to be the bath block of a probable Roman villa. The present whereabouts of the various finds from the site (including the quern) could not be ascertained. (4)

In 1982 the Kent Archaeological Rescue Unit carried out a test pit survey of the field. A structure was located in what appears to have been the north east corner of the field. The building had been heavily robbed. It was 8.8m long and 5.5m wide and consisted of three rooms, one with an apse. The westernmost room appears to have had a hypocaust. The site was not fully excavated. A double grave had been dug through the middle of one of the rooms, at some time after the building had been demolished as it cut both the floor and east wall. The inhumations were of adults, one of which was probably male, but poorly preserved. Pottery from the site dated form the late 1st century to the early 3rd century. (7)

<1> OS 6" 1961 (OS Card Reference). SKE48369.

<2> Arch Cant 61 1948 181 (E Greenfield Lt Col GW Meates & E Birchenough) (OS Card Reference). SKE35327.

<3> Arch Cant 77 1962 202 (KD Hore) (OS Card Reference). SKE35617.

<4> Oral Lt Col GW Meates (OS Card Reference). SKE47944.

<5> F1 ASP 05-OCT-64 (OS Card Reference). SKE41949.

<6> Field report for monument TQ 56 SW 4 - October, 1964 (Bibliographic reference). SKE2968.

<7> Philp, B & Chenery, M, 2006, Lullingstone and Shoreham: Discoveries at the Roman Villa Site 1982-86 (Bibliographic reference). SKE24002.