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| Country view of River Darant |
The Lullingstone villa, lies close to the west bank of the
River Darent and is terraced into the east facing slope, its boundary extending
down to the river bank. The villa was
situated above it, upon a low terrace, cut back into the hillside.
To the north and south deeper compartments
were built. Behind it to the west and 20 feet higher, a second terrace was
constructed, this also being cut into the hillside. Upon this second terrace
two religious buildings, a small circular temple and a temple- mausoleum were
built. After the villa went out of habitation, hundreds of years of clay and
flint hill-wash cascaded down to form a steep slope and consequently buried the
ancient building, thus preserving some of the constructed walls up to 8 feet in
height.
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| View of surrounding countryside |
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| Position of the circular shrine |
These three rivers meander through copses and a number of water meadows and eventually flow into the larger River Thames east of London. Within this abundance of clear running water, trout and other edible fish would have been found. This, with other natural attributes, including hundreds of acres of land for extensive farming, the flat valley bottom offering a lush pasture for cattle and finally, to the east of the valley, the wooded heights would have supplied fuel and oak for the construction of buildings, all of these would have provided an ideal environment for a rewarding, sustainable future. In such an environment the native/indigenous peoples would have flourished. In all probability the valley would have sustained a number of family units for many generations of the past, well before the main arrival of Vespasian and his conquering Legions in AD43. But with their homes being constructed of wood, thatch and clay, all of which is degradable, their presence would have faded with the passing of time. Only the agricultural terrace, to the high ground to the west, is where their past is betrayed, caused by their ploughing activities. Over many generations of tilling, these great plough banks and lynchets were formed. Then, on closer inspection, Belgic pottery is to be found dated to before 80AD.
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| View from the grounds of the villa |
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| View from the grounds of the villa |
Prior to Lullingstone Roman Villa being discovered and excavated, a small group of local archaeologists, inspired by the knowledge of other known Roman buildings in the valley, began a field survey of the upper part of the valley from Farningham working south to Otford. Evidence of any Roman building material, including brick, tile and pottery fragments, were inserted on a map. When the whole of the valley map was scrutinised it became evident that every 2-3 miles, from Otford to Dartford, Roman buildings of some size existed. It seemed possible that land had been parcelled out for individual farming units, but a gap seemed to occur at Lullingstone. Two members of the field survey team continued their survey around that area of Lullingstone. Driven on by their passion, fuelled by a lusting curiosity for the past, they began to search dense undergrowth and came upon trees that had bowed to the storms of the past and noticed that the roots of one of the trees had levered up red brick, tile, tesserae and shards of Roman pottery. This was noted and filed. Then with the threat of instability to the people of the nation, caused by Hitler’s military massing upon the horizon, the files were laid to rest and for the next ten years gathered dust.
When the universal interruption of the war receded from the
shores of Britain, the search for the Romano-British villa resumed with renewed
vigour. Many new faces emerged from the mists of memory to form the Darent
Valley Archaeological Research Group. With the completion of the field survey,
a watershed of detective work descended upon the literary works of the past.
These were scrutinized and hiding away in the Archaeologia Cantiana Volume
XXXIX, page 158, was a reference to a Roman Villa ‘at Lullingstone at the north
eastern boundary of the park (Gentleman’s Magazine, 1823, Pt 1, pages 577-580)’. This article talks about the discovery of a
tessellated pavement, coins and other relics of Roman occupation all brought
back to the eye by the plough. This illuminating piece of literary source drove
on towards the work of John Thorpe, the antiquary, and his monumental work
Custumale Roffense published in 1788. Through viewing this work, it eventually
became apparent that the two members of the field survey before the war, who
had mapped out the remains of the Roman material from the roots of the felled
tree, that what they had found related to the Lullingstone Villa itself. Permission
to excavate was sort out and consequently granted by the landowners and in the
spring of 1949 archaeological excavations began.
I can only imagine the weeks prior to the first day of the
excavation; for many of the excavators would have been filled with the emotions
of impatience and excitement. Perhaps
some of the more romantic excavators offered up silent prayers to Apollo – the Roman
sun God, so the fire of their enthusiasm, fuelled by expectancy, would not be
dampened with grey skies and rain. It was within this atmosphere of expectancy,
in the spring of 1949, that the first spade penetrated the ground. Little did
these early excavators realise that eventually their efforts would expose to
the nation one of the earliest chapels of Christian worship as yet known in
England. The excavations at Lullingstone
continued up until 1961.
The site was excavated by the Darent Valley Archaeological group, directed by Earnest Greenfield and Edwyn Birchenough and subsequently, solely, by Lt Col GW Meates – until 1961. Greenfield and Birchenough were the two archaeologists who had recognised the Roman deposits within the roots of the fallen tree, on the bank of the River Darent. In 1958, it became apparent that this villa was of national importance and, consequently, the then Ministry of Works erected a specially designed cover building over the remains and opened the villa to public viewing in 1963. Sadly, by the late 20th century, the original cover building was beginning to show its age and a number of leaks appeared. Under the guidance of English Heritage a £1.8 million renovation took place to safeguard all that the visitor can see today.
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| Roman building material on the river bed |
The site was excavated by the Darent Valley Archaeological group, directed by Earnest Greenfield and Edwyn Birchenough and subsequently, solely, by Lt Col GW Meates – until 1961. Greenfield and Birchenough were the two archaeologists who had recognised the Roman deposits within the roots of the fallen tree, on the bank of the River Darent. In 1958, it became apparent that this villa was of national importance and, consequently, the then Ministry of Works erected a specially designed cover building over the remains and opened the villa to public viewing in 1963. Sadly, by the late 20th century, the original cover building was beginning to show its age and a number of leaks appeared. Under the guidance of English Heritage a £1.8 million renovation took place to safeguard all that the visitor can see today.
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| Memorial Plaque |
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| The villa in its grounds |
EV0LUTION AND HISTORY OF THE VILLA
The first substantial building on this site was possibly
constructed in the early 70’s AD. The villa underwent a great deal of expansion
and remodelling and, without doubt, the occasional change of ownership. The
political and the archaeological evidence seem to tell a story of prosperity
and recession. Changes were made by architectural fashions, fuelled by
prosperity. Perhaps the first inhabitants were of tribal aristocracy, but later
in the villa’s life the owners were more affiliated to the Roman/Greek legacy
in literature, as borne out by the mosaic floors and busts of marble, sourced
from the Mediterranean.
To fully comprehend the evolution of this villa we have to
take a long look back over our shoulder and understand why the Romans, under
Claudius, breached the shores of Britain in AD 43. They were driven by
Britain’s rich resources in copper, silver, gold, tin, lead and salt. Lead
mining in Somerset, North West England and Wales was highly productive by AD
49. By AD 70 Britain was the leading lead producing province within the Empire.
Silver and lead were found together, the silver being encased in lead ore. The silver was especially important to the
Roman economy as it was used for the production of coins. Gold was mined in
Wales at Dolaucothi, and iron was mined from the Weald and the Forest of Dean.
With the economy prospering, a workable administration system would have needed
to be in place. It seems that Colchester (Camulodunum) and St Albans
(Verulamium) were on course to succeed in this endeavour. Then, suddenly, the
volcano of Boudicca erupted! With hindsight the following destruction and loss
of life could have been avoided but, unfortunately, Roman greed prevailed.
Boudicca, the queen of the Iceni tribe, in East Anglia, and her two daughters –
Camorra and Tasca, suffered a political and humiliating rape. These combined
events resulted in the future holocaust. Prasutagus, the king of the Iceni
tribe, died in AD61 and his will left half of his estate to the Roman Emperor
and the other half to his wife and daughters. This was legal by British law,
but the Roman administrator, Catus Decianus, chose to apply Roman law, as
Britain was a province of the Roman Empire, which only allowed inheritance to
male descendants. Underlying this event, the Romans had seized the lead mines
within Iceni territory which cut off the financial benefit to the Iceni royal
family. Consequently Prasutagus was forced to borrow money from Seneca, a
wealthy Roman philosopher. Under Roman law, Seneca would not have been allowed
to lend money to a fellow Roman, but the Iceni tribe were classed as foreigners,
therefore this loan would have been legal. At the death of Prasutagus, Seneca
informed the Roman administrator, Catus Decianus, that he wished to call in his
loan. This, therefore, would have put pressure on the administrator to apply
Roman law to Prasutagus’ will.
The public flogging of Boudica and the loss of her
daughters’ virginity, taken by the Roman soldiers, was the final humiliation
that forced the bubbling magma of discontent to the surface. In consequence to
this, other tribes, also disillusioned with the heavy hand of Rome, joined
together with Boudica’s Iceni tribe and the destruction of anything, or anybody,
allied to Romanisation was imminent. Colchester (Camulodunum), London
(Londinium) and St Albans (Verulamium) were ransacked, burnt to the ground and
inhabitants were destroyed by the violence of the sword. Roman control of
Britain became fragile and the political stability of the Island was in the
balance. News of the rebellion rippled through to the then Governor of Britain,
Gaius Suetonius Paulinus , who was engaged with his army on the Island of
Anglesey (Mona), off the north west coast of Wales, where the vicious veins of
his Legions, with their heavy-soles, hobnailed caligae, were stamping the life
out of the Druids. The Druids, the priestly class in Britain, welded more power
over the Celtic tribes than the Celtic kings themselves. This religious order
was responsible for organising worship, judicial procedures and the practice of
divination. They preached that the human soul was indestructible and this
teaching developed a high level of human courage when the tribes were engaged
in combat. Without the influence of the Druids, the tribes would be under the control
of their various kings whom the Romans could manipulate.
Paulinus’ intrusion on the Isle of Anglesey was interrupted
by the uprising of the native tribes and after a short period of assessment of
the situation, Paulinus marched his Legions north east and, at a battlefield
not as yet identified by archaeologists, extinguished the Boudicca led revolt.
The waves of the after-shock of this revolt eventually reached Rome and the Emperor,
Nero. His response was to recall Paulinus back to Rome and replace him with the
more conciliatory Publius Petronius Turpilianus, whose policy was one of
appeasement. This policy of appeasement began to be more consolidated in the
late summer of AD 77 when Gnaeus Julius Agricola became the Roman Governor of
Britain. He was a reputable administrator as well as a commander, and his
reforms encouraged the expansion of Roman ways, including education for the
native nobility. He reformed the corn levy which then became financially of
more benefit to the community rather than to specific individuals. These
measures encouraged the growth of towns to be established on the Roman model,
culminating with the opening of St Albans (Verulamium) civic centre. It comprised
of a forum with colonnaded shops, basilica and official cult temples.
With the growth of the population in the towns, more food
would have been required. This accelerated the evolution of the farmsteads in
the Darent valley. Some farmsteads grasped the opportunity to expand and gain
more wealth. This, combined with Romanisation, was reflected in the living
quarters of the families which became more substantial, sophisticated and
elegant. They became known as villas.
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| Villa cover-building |
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| Villa cover-building |
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| The villa shop |
There is a balcony walkway from which the visitor has a deeper view into the rooms below. The walkway floor space is adorned with cabinets housing interesting artefacts. Also on view is a lead sarcophagus containing the remains of a young man. This coffin was excavated from the mausoleum within the villa grounds. The mausoleums Roman ruins were incorporated into the late Anglo Saxon chapel of Lullingstane.
Interestingly, upon the young man’s coffin a bone inlay head of Medusa was found. This was, possibly, the lid of the now degraded wooden box which contained a gaming set of dice and glass counters. This Medusa’s head could have been an amulet to protect the coffin and ward off evil spirits. All this adds a welcoming human presence to the site. Further on, and decorating the wall on the left, are colourful depictions of figures and medallions from the mosaic floors.
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| Time-line of the villa |
Archaeology has revealed that there was a succession of
mosaic floors constructed in Room 19 (frigidarium). Although no design of the
later mosaic was revealed a large number of tesserae were excavated. Some were
fragments of samian ware which was dated to the mid 2nd century AD.
Perhaps then this mosaic was constructed in the later years of the second
century AD. The white tesserae within the Lullingstone mosaics are of chalk.
Some red clay tile has been recognised and the dark blue/grey tesserae were
created from the oxidised core of the tile. Yellow ochre is present, as is
tesserae of dark grey, brown, yellow, pink and buff. The various deposits of
sandstone from the Weald of south east England could have provided the variety
of colours. These deposits could also have been responsible for some of the red
and purple tesserae. I seek out these coloured stones and there before me and
laid down by ancient hands, they appear, all grouped together to tell two
engaging stores from classical Greek mythology. I glide my eyes over the whole
mosaic and my mind is eventually impacted by irregularities contained in the
Greek key border. The outer border of the Greek key design is roughly executed
and in the south east corner there is no link to the southern side. On the opposite
side, a dog-leg is noticed. The infill of the design on the northern side is of
white tesserae, as is the east side, but on the south side some of the
background tesserae are of yellow. On the outer boundary of the east side, a
single line of white tesserae suddenly ceases at a point a little over halfway
towards the south. This can possibly be explained away by the presence of a
doorway, 10 feet wide, which stood centrally in the east wall when this mosaic
was first constructed.
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| Phases of the villa |
The two remaining mosaics on view today are to be found in
the apsed dining/reception room. Both mosaics, as I have previously said,
depict scenes from mythological stories. In the semi-circular apse we view the
‘abduction of Europa’. In the mosaic seen above this we view ‘Bellerophon
riding Pegasus and killing the Chimera’. In three of the four corners of this
mosaic are roundels depicting the seasons. The missing roundel and part of the
border were disfigured and destroyed by two post holes erected in the 18th
century. These two mosaics are separated by an intriguing rectangular panel
containing 40 squares and octagons laid out in four rows of ten. The boxes
contain a medley of crosses, swastikas, one of which is reversed, and
heart-shaped leaves. Intriguingly, towards the southern end, a cantharus/cup,
composed of brown tesserae with a red back ground , can be seen.
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| The mosaic floor of the reception room |
I feel that the viewing of these mosaics is enhanced if the
story of the myth is known and one can therefore appreciate the skill of the
mosaicist in his interpretation of it. Bellerophon is depicted wearing red,
over-the-ankle boots and sporting an elegant red tunic (chlamys) as worn by the
Greeks when hunting. It was worn across the chest and was thrown backwards over
the left shoulder. The right arm was therefore free to carry a weapon of
destruction. Small red tesserae make up the garment which also contains lines
of dark blue tesserae, used to highlight the folds within it. Pegasus, the
winged horse, gallops in haste across the white background, elegantly
controlled and ridden by the composed looking Bellerophon., who drives a long
thin lance into the Chimera.
The Chimera is depicted here as an insignificant
small yellow lion and seem to be trying to outrun the magnificent and proud
Pegasus. In the myth, this beast was a
combination of the frightful and the grotesque. It vomited fire from its lion’s
mouth, the tail was fanged and poisonous, while a goats head protruded from the
middle of its back. The myth unwinds as follows: Bellerophon was born in
Korinthos/Corinth and was sired by the God Poseidon. Bellerophon’s mother was Eurynome but he was
raised by Euronome’s husband, the King Glaucus.
Under King Glaucus’ guidance Bellerophon matured into a talented
horseman. He was handsome, athletic, had an enquiring mind and longed for
adventure. Bellerophon seems to have been exiled for an unintentional killing,
possibly one of his brothers named Deliades. By means of atonement for this
crime he is sent as a suppliant to Proetus, a king in Tiryns. Proetus, by
virtue of his kingship, cleanses Bellerophon of his crime. The king’s wife
Anteia/Stheneboca falls in love with Bellerophon who, being a man of honour,
declines her advances. In revenge for this rejection, Anteia confides to her
husband that Bellerophon had tried to seduce her. Proetus, enraged and possibly
envious and jealous of Bellerophon’s charisma, composes a letter to his
father-in-law, Iobates, king of Lycia, requesting that Bellerophon be put to
death. Bellerophon is instructed by Proetus to carry and deliver the sealed
letter to Iobates. When the king reads the letter he is faced with a dilemma.
Although he wants to please his son-in-law, he also did not wish to enrage the
wrath of Erinyes, three avenger goddesses of crime. So, slyly, he instructs
Bellerophon to slay the Chimera, a monster who terrified and preyed upon the
local community, the bones of his victims were left strewn along the
mountainside where the Chimera lived. Bellerophon sought out and engaged the
wisdom of Polyidus, the wisest man in Lycia. Bellerophon felt he needed a horse
to be able to fulfil the task and therefore Polyidus informed him about Pegasus,
the immortal winged horse. To obtain the horse Polyidus advised him to spend
the night in Athena’s temple and to pay her much homage. In a dream Athena came
to him and left him a golden bridle and instructed him about the location of
the well where Pegasus drank. In the morning, as Pegasus knelt to drink from
the well, Bellerophon slipped the bridle onto the horses head. Consequently,
Bellerophon and Pegasus were united for the quest and in due course the people
of the village were delivered salvation.
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| Bellerophon killing the Chimera |
If we dwell on this story, we can recognise that
unconditional love is offered to a child by a man who was not a blood relative.
Also we see righteousness, evil and the rejection of temptation. Wisdom is
there as is salvation and even a miracle or two. Perhaps then, when the
proprietor of this villa and his family and possibly some friends, enjoyed some
food in this dining room, a fleeting glance at this mosaic would serve to
remind them of their Christian values.
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| Spring-Autumn-Winter |
If we feed our eyes once more upon the scene within the
cushion-shaped part of the mosaic, we are viewing a construction of quality and
of forceful and rhythmic action. Bellerophon and the soaring Pegasus are
accompanied by dolphins and marine molluscs. Perhaps this scene symbolises the
part of the myth where Bellerophon has to travel across the Aegean to Lycia to
deliver the letter requesting his death. The four, long-whiskered, bulbous
dolphins face each other in two pairs, one of dark blue/grey, one of yellow and
two of yellow ochre. The open marine molluscs are depicted in red. On the
outside of this depiction of Bellerophon and Pegasus, but still contained
within the dark blue/grey square panel, three medallions outlined in red rest
intriguingly in the corners. Each medallion contains a human head and perhaps,
by the style of their hair, they depict women. The portraits on the medallions
represent the seasons of the year, although the head depicting summer is lost.
Winter, clad in a warming cloak, constructed of dark blue tesserae and with a
cold, stern, white face seems to stare with envy and disapproval in the
direction of Spring. Spring is skilfully constructed showing clearly a face of
innocence, kindliness and of contentment as she gazes at the swallow perching
on her shoulder. She wears a tunic of orange/yellow, tight fitting to her
throat and over her left shoulder is flung a red cloak. Some lines of small,
dark blue tesserae represent the folds within the garment. The face of Autumn
is beautifully portrayed, perhaps reddened by the sun and shows a reserved and
pensive expression. She has more hair than Spring and it seems to be braided.
Interwoven into her hair and drooping in a downward curve are strands of corn
and straw. Autumn wears the same attire as Spring although her tunic seems to
be in a shade of pink. How to interpret these medallions within the context of
the whole mosaic floor is open to interesting debate. Bellerophon and Pegasus
have been associated in conjunction with the four seasons of the year in
mosaics in France and Italy. There is also a correspondence between the seasons
and the stages of human life, from birth to death. Spring is the birth, Summer
is youth, Autumn is adulthood and Winter brings old age and death.
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| The abduction of Europa by Jupiter |
A second mosaic scene which occupies the apse, is a
representation of the abduction of Europa by Jupiter, in the form of a white
bull. It is a story of lustful, wayward love and the jealous emotions of the
betrayed wife, Juno. The mosaicists hand shows his talent in the execution of
this scene. All is delicately outlined in red (possibly tile) on a white
ground. The depiction of the bull’s face shows eagerness in his role of
abduction, while Europa, adorned with armlets, bracelet and a necklace, seems
serene in her innocence. Her transparent gown, folded and anchored around her
leg, billows out behind her in the breeze from her outstretched hands. The hind
hooves of the bull penetrate the sea as he starts his journey to the island of
Crete. The cupids indicate emotions, the one holding the bull’s tail represents
caution. The leading cupid, bearing in his left hand a flaming torch, urges
abandonment to her forthcoming fate. The mosaic is a wonderful medley of the
subtle use of colours and is of high technical ability. Within the cupids’
wings dark blue and red stripes can be seen. The robe billowing out behind
Europa’s head contains tesserae of pink, blue and yellow. The hair of the three
figures is delicately constructed with blue, orange, yellow and pink.
If we return to the myth, it gives an intriguing insight to
the loves and lives of the Gods and Goddesses of mythology. Jupiter, the
husband of the Goddess Juno, has his passions stirred by Europa, the beautiful
daughter of Agenor, king of Phoenicia. Jupiter, in the guise of a placid white
bull, places himself within the herds of the cattle of Europa’s father. When
Europa comes across the bull, when attending her father’s herd, she is seduced
by his beauty of the purest white and starts to caress him. When she decides to
place herself upon the bulls back he arises and with all haste carries her off
across the sea to the island of Crete. On arrival at Crete, Jupiter changes
himself to his human and godlike form. He declares his love for her and Europa,
in due course, bears him three sons. Juno, Jupiter’s wife, seems to be having a
less successful time of seduction than her husband. Rejected by the Trojan,
Paris, in favour of the fascinating charms of Venus, Juno, in an act of
jealousy, calls upon Aeolus, king of the winds, to destroy the fleet of galleys
of the Trojan Aeneas, which was carrying the national Gods and the sacred fire
of Troy. With all this in mind we should now view the Latin inscription which
refers to a passage in the Aeneid of Virgil and its translation.
INVIDA SI
TA(VRI) VIDISSET INVO NATATVS
IVSTIVS
AEOLIAS ISSET ADVSQVE DOMOS
(“If jealous Juno had seen the swimming of the bull, she
might more justly have gone to the halls of Aeolus”)
All is then revealed symbolising, perhaps with irony and
some humour, the perils awaiting the emotions of deceit and revenge …and love ?
This mosaic perhaps portraying the very opposite of the Christian message
within the mosaic of Bellerophon and Pegasus.
The mosaic of the ‘abduction of Europa’ is enclosed in a
semi-circular border which frames the scene like a necklace. The border is
based on the form of twisted guilloche, with each of the enclosed circles
filled with alternate red and white discs. This rests on a dark blue
background. In all probability, this border would have contained the seating
arrangements, so the mosaic and its inscription could be viewed with interest
and discussed by visiting guests.
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| The panel of forty squares from the reception room |
I feel that the most intriguing part of this mosaic floor is
the extraordinary panel of forty spaced squares, which sits in between the two
figured mosaic scenes like a Persian rug. It seems perhaps too easy to dismiss
this creation as a random piece of work. The panel is best viewed from the
south side. It contains a number of motifs used within mosaics over many
hundreds of years. If we dwell for a moment or two we perhaps realise that the
inhabitants of this establishment are all-embracing of the past and of the
modern. Greek and Roman influences are abundant as is the worship of pagan gods
and the modern religion of Christianity. But what of the native Celts, the
indigenous people of this Island? Have they really been forgotten and
consequently faded into obscurity? By now, after many generations of Roman
rule, the local men would have mastered the skills of the mosaicists. Perhaps
then, one was commissioned to lay a mosaic panel to their memory. With no
written history of Celtic traditions, myths or stories they can only be
recognised by the decorative motifs which adorned their metalwork. A display of
Celtic metalwork can be seen at the museum in Cirencester, Gloucestershire.
Some of their metalwork within this museum contain patterns which are
replicated within the panel of forty squares at this villa. Coin evidence
suggests that these mosaics were constructed in the middle part of the 4th
Century AD.
The Deep Room
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| Marble Bust |
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| Marble Bust |
Amongst all the collapsed building material of roof tiles,
carbonised wooden beams and many thousands of pieces of wall plaster, two
bearded busts revealed themselves. These busts were fashioned from fine white
Greek marble and possibly sourced from the ancient quarries on Mount
Pentelicus, near Athens. It is highly probable that these busts were carved in
the area of the eastern Mediterranean. These busts could well have been images
for veneration within this pagan/cult room. One seems to be wearing a tunic and
cloak/sagum, a semi-military garment, pinned on the right by a circular brooch,
as worn by Romans of distinction. It has been suggested that this bust is of P.
Helvius Successus. Interestingly,
Richard de Kind, on examination of the other bust, has identified it (bust with
head only) as that of Publius Helvius Pertinax, Governor of Britain in 185-186
AD, and briefly Emperor in 193 AD, and son of P. Helvius Successus. Also within
this room four pottery vessels were revealed. Two were in holes in the
underlying concrete floor and sealed down by the later clay floor. The other
two were within the clay floor, but with their rims protruding several inches
above it. Perhaps then these pots were votive in nature. The busts of these two
prominent Romans, from the distant past, were after cleaning deposited for
safekeeping and public viewing at Lullingstone Castle. Today they reside in the
sanctuary of the Roman Room within the British Museum, in London.
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| Reconstruction of wall painting from the Chapel |
Six to seven thousand pieces of painted wall-plaster from six different walls, relating to the two rooms above the deep room, now required to be sorted out to see if there was any information to be gathered from their reconstruction. The heat of the fire was responsible for the change in the colours of reds and blues to dark olive or green, which greatly increased the difficulty of reconstructing the original designs. The responsibility for this challenge was taken on by Mr C.D.P. Nicholson, Professor of classical archaeology at Cambridge University.
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| The Water Nymphs.Oil painting by A.J.Rook |
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| Chi-Rho/Christian monogram |
If we take a closer look at the human figures, the figure
depicted within the pillars on the far left seems to have the countenance of a
woman. Perhaps, she is the wife of the proprietor who, diminutive with age and
a receding hairline, sits within the pillars on the far right. Between them,
perhaps, are their four children. If we focus on the background of the figure
next to the woman, a pulled curtain can be noticed, this is the only figure
with this feature. This curtain/veil could symbolise the passing of this young
man from his life on earth to his continued life in Heaven. He, in all
probability, had died before this columned portico was painted.
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| The Christian villa |
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| Possibly the villa owner and his family |
The painstaking reconstruction of the fragments of
wall-plaster continued and eventually the breakthrough was made which confirmed
that these upper rooms were places of Christian worship. Two large-scale
representations of the Chi – Rho monogram were reconstructed. This sacred
monogram, the earliest sign of Christianity, was found to be on the south wall
of the chapel. Another was found in the ante- chamber/narthex. Mr E. Greenfield
was responsible for the reconstruction of the monogram within the ante-chamber.
Yes, the same gentleman whose eyes had penetrated the roots of the fallen tree
many years before and that had led to the excavation of this villa. Sadly, Mr
Greenfield died at the age of 58 and a plaque in his memory can be viewed in
the villa’s grounds. The reconstruction of the richly coloured portico,
containing the Romano-British worshipers and one of the Chi-Rho monograms, can
now be viewed in the Roman room (49) within the British Museum in London.
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| Reconstruction showing the curtain behind the second figure |
CONCLUSION
The Lullingstone Roman Villa seems to have been inhabited
from the late 1st Century AD to its demise by fire in the early 5th
Century AD. Much of what is visible to the visitor today relates to the last
hundred years of its life although, the twelve years of excavations have
supplied sufficient evidence to be able to reconstruct the development of the
villa during its 300 years, or so, of its domestic life. Four hundred and
thirty five coins were found, some from each century of occupation, with the 4th
Century coins being the most numerous.
The Western Roman Empire in 312 AD became under the rule of
a single emperor, Constantine the Great. His defeat of Maxenties, at the battle
of Milviane Bridge, overthrowing the ‘Tetrarchy’ system of rule by four
emperors, freed Britain from financial stringency and economic stress. Within
this peaceful background prosperity blossomed. In the early 4th
Century AD, a huge granary, 24 metres by 10 metres was constructed between the
villa and the river. This would have stored wheat/barley ready for
transportation by river and road, via Watling Street, and then perhaps to
London and onward to the continent. This period of time was a golden
renaissance for the Lullingstone villa. With the proprietor’s growing wealth
the middle of the villa was radically altered, the mosaic floors were
constructed and the décor updated with a range of fresh, splendid colours.
Under the rule and guidance of the new Emperor, Christianity
became the dominant religion of the Roman Empire. In 313 AD Constantine and
Licinius issued the Edict of Milan, legalising Christian worship. This then, in
all probability, stimulated the growth of Christianity in England and, in due
course, the rooms above the deep room of the villa were converted to a house
chapel dedicated to Christian worship. By 380 AD the high tide of prosperity
was beginning to ebb for the villa’s inhabitants. Civil strife within the
Empire, caused by the disastrous ambitions of prominent Romans casting and
throwing their Legions against each other, left the borders of the Empire more
vulnerable to be pierced by the barbarian tribes. In Britain the daily living
was filled with the air of uncertainty and consequently the villa started to be
scaled down in size and amenities. The kitchens went out of use, the baths were
filled in and the granary was down-graded to just a barn. With the borders of
Britain weakened by the loss of man-power, the penetrating waves of Saxon
settlers now became a flood. It is possible that the villa’s working life as a
farm ceased and it became a place of pagan and Christian worship for the local
community. By the late 4th century 14 pagan and 14 Christian
ceremonial days coincided with each other, which indicates that both pagan and
Christian worship could have been practised at the same time without conflict.
Perhaps the people of the surrounding community would have assembled in the
rooms containing the mosaics before attending the services to their chosen
worship. Although no more families grew up in this tranquil and beautiful
valley within this villa, Christianity began to prosper. Pagan gods were for
the present, Christianity was the future. How could any pagan god compete with
a God that offered up to its worshiper’s everlasting life?
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| This gemstone was found outside the west wall. |
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