Monument record MDO6655 - Possible Roman villa at Newberry Road, Weymouth

Finds of Roman building debris and mosaics in the Newberry Road/Spring Terrace area originally discovered in 1835 and later in 1902, may indicate the site of a probable Roman villa.

(Area SY 67987845) A Roman tessellated pavement, originally discovered in 1835, was found during building operations by Mr Board, 13 Raneleigh Road, Weymouth in 1902. The pavement was off Newbury Terrace on the east side of Dorset Place 'in a field adjoining Newberry Gardens on the west' and so probably under the houses. It was purchased for Dorchester Museum in 1902 and a Saxon sceat, said to have been found on it, was presented to the Museum by Dr March in 1902. <1-4>

(SY 67997839) "I found the pavement when I built the house about 1902. It was only a small portion about 18 ins below ground level. It was found while the foundations of perhaps the 3rd or 4th house dug up from the South East corner of Dorset Place were being dug. I am not clear which house it was but it was in the front of it. I superintended the removal of the pavement and I remember neither coins nor walls in the area. Dr March is unknown to me" <5.1>.

(SY 67987844) "I was present when the pavement was found and I pointed it out to Mr Board. It seemed to be part of a passage but no walls were found. It was right in the centre of No 19 and there were no coins". <5.2>

Mr Board is "failing". Mr Gill in a brief telephone call recounted all the facts in a firm voice and without hesitation. He was quite definite about his statement and is evidently interested in archaeology generally. No 19 Newberry Terrace is on land which falls gently to the south. See sketch plan. <5>

A villa is probably indicated by the mosaic or mosaics found in 1835 and 1902. The corner of the mosaic floor removed to the Dorset County Museum in 1902 was found east of the road, about SY 67987839, and is probably distinct from the tessellated pavement found nearby in 1835 perhaps under Spring Terrace, SY 67977837. (6)

There is a close association between the 1835 and 1902 discoveries probably indicating an extensive villa complex. <6>

The pavement was off Newbury Terrace on the east side of Dorset Place in a field adjoining Newberry Gardens on the west and so probably under the houses at Spring Terrace. The surviving pattern of five colours, was 10 and a half feet by 5 feet. It had a coarse border of two red lines on a white ground enclosing a finer triple border of black and white chevrons, guilloche in black, white, brown and red, and chequers in white red, grey and brown. Some of the centre panel survived, it was decorated with a white ground divided into triangular spaces by three oblique lines of guilloche. A small part of the base of one triangle was of different coloured tesserae set lozenge-wise. This may have been a curvilinear pattern. The mosaic found in 1902 to the east of the road may be different to the tessellated pavement found in 1835 perhaps under Spring Terrace, SY 67977837. <7>

DO 31-33 Possibly part of the same villa. <8>

<1> 1902, A brief account on the setting up of the Newberry Road mosaic in Dorset County Museum., pxxvi-xxvii (Article in serial). SWX1788.

<2> 1903, Proc Dorset Nat Hist. Antiq. FC 24, 44 (xlix) (Article in serial). SWX1789.

<3> Oliver, V L, 1923, Pre-Roman and Roman Occupation of the Weymouth District. Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 39 (Article in serial). SWX1763.

<4> Oliver, V L, V L Oliver Mss in Dorchester Museum (Unpublished document). SWX1791.

<5> Rigg, J, Field Investigators Comments JR, F1 JR 13-AUG-54 (Unpublished document). SWX1255.

<5.1> Oral: Mr Board, 1 Spring Avenue, Weymouth (Verbal communication). SWX1292.

<5.2> Oral: Mr Gill, Bencleaves Stredu Road Swanage (Verbal communication). SWX1293.

<6> Farrar R A H, 1963, The Site of the Roman Villa at Newberry Road, Weymouth, 96-8 (Article in serial). SWX1794.

<6> Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 1964, Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society for 1963, 96-98 (Serial). SDO63.

<7> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England), 1970, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume II (South East) Part 3, 615 (Monograph). SDO150.

'(439) Newberry Road, Weymouth (SY 67 NE). A Villa is probably indicated by a mosaic or mosaics found in 1835 and 1902 on the lower S.-facing slope of a re-entrant in Nothe Clay about 25 ft. above the sea which lies 200 yds. to E.

The corner of a mosaic floor removed to D.C.M. in 1902 was found E. of the road, about 67987839, and was probably distinct from a 'Roman tessellated pavement' found nearby in 1835 perhaps under Spring Terrace, 67977837. The surviving pattern of five colours, 10½ ft. by 5 ft., is unusual. A coarse border of two red lines on a white ground encloses a finer triple border consisting of black and white chevrons, guilloche in black, white, brown and red, and chequers in white, red, grey and brown. Remains of a centre panel consist of a white ground divided apparently into triangular spaces by three oblique lines of guilloche. A small grey-edged square at the base of the best preserved triangle was of variously coloured tesserae set lozenge-wise, of which only the white are present. The adjoining triangle, in which the white ground tesserae are set lozenge-wise, may have contained a curvilinear pattern. The only find recorded was a Saxon sceatta allegedly on the floor. (Dorset Procs. XLIV (1923), 39–40; LXXXV (1963), 96–8.)'

<8> Scott, E, 1993, A Gazetteer of Roman villas in Britain, 55 (Bibliographic reference). SWX1795.

<9> Royal Commission on Historic Monuments, Externally held archive: RCH01/093 RCHME Inventory: Dorset II (South-East) (Unpublished document). SDO17434.

<10> Historic England, Historic England Archive, AA81/00014 (Index). SDO14738.

FOUND 1902.POSSIBLY PART OF SAME BUILDING AS FRAGMENT FD 1835

<11> Historic England, Historic England Archive, P11379 (Index). SDO14738.

FOUND 1902.POSSIBLY PART OF SAME BUILDING AS FRAGMENT FD 1835 SEE DOR2/PT 3/614

<12> National Record of the Historic Environment, 451626 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Dec 2 2022 12:36PM