Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

Site of a Roman building found in 1896-7, it had an unsual form of hypocaust, roof tiles and painted wall plaster was also recovered. Possibly a Roman villa.

Monument Types

• VILLA? (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Associated Finds

• ANIMAL REMAINS (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• BROOCH (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• FLOOR TILE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• FLUE TILE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• ROOF TILE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• SHERD (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• WALL PLASTER (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Full description

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[TQ 7262 6171] Roman building foundation found AD 1896-7 [NAT] (1) Roman house at Burham excavated by myself [G. Patrick] and G. Payne on December 8th 1896. A small compact Roman house 60 feet x 33 feet, with an unusual form of hypocaust at the SW corner of the building beneath a room 18 feet x 16 feet. Channels cut in the chalk on all four sides of the room connected with three other channels which radiated from the mouth of the furnace, and with eight vertical flues formed by pairs of box tiles set in the walls. Stone roofing tiles, flue tiles, pottery sherds, coloured plaster, a small bronze fibula, animal bones and oyster shells were found. (2) The site of this Roman house is on the western side of a road which runs from Burham old church to Little Curland midway between New Burhamchurch and the Burham [Brick and Cement] Company's Works. A small house with a hypocaust of unusual type at the NW angle. One room was paved with large chips of red and buff tile set in mortar. The heated room had been paved with pebble concrete 4 inches thick. A small broken black cup in which lay a bronze bow shaped brooch was found with other remains [as above]. (3) The Rev E.E. Le Bas made further researches on the site and found the wall of a Roman building, and traced it for 30 feet in a north easterly direction. He also met with other walls at a depth of 3 feet. (4) No other information. Site under crop. (5) Under pasture, nothing to be seen. (6) Burham. The small Roman house with six rooms found in 1896 has a particularly interesting heated room at the NW angle of the house. At Burham we have both tubulation and channelled hypocaust suggesting that the room was heated by radiation of floors or walls not by hot air. Painted wall plaster (black, gray, green, ochre and dark red) were also found here. Another room at the S end had a concrete floor of broken tile, mortar and flints. Of the other rooms nothing is known. The house was plainly a small cottage, with warm room or bath at the N end. (7-8) KE 16 Listed as the possible site of a Roman villa. (9) Additional bibliography (10-11)

<1> OS 6" 1939 (OS Card Reference). SKE48359.

<2> JBAA Vol 3 NS 1897 p.31-5 Excn Rep illus (G Patrick) (OS Card Reference). SKE45012.

<3> Arch Cant Vol 23 1898 p.10-13 illus (G Payne) (OS Card Reference). SKE36383.

<4> Arch Cant Vol 34 1920 p.155 (G Payne) (OS Card Reference). SKE36395.

<5> F1 CFW 30-JAN-59 (OS Card Reference). SKE42833.

<6> F2 ASP 16-NOV-64 (OS Card Reference). SKE43120.

<7> VCH Kent 3 1932 109 Plan (OS Card Reference). SKE50994.

<8> PSA 2nd S 18 1899-1901 38-9 (OS Card Reference). SKE48768.

<9> Eleanor Scott, 1993, A gazetteer of Roman villas in Britain (Unspecified Type). SWX23549.

<10> Field report for monument TQ 76 SW 13 - November, 1964 (Bibliographic reference). SKE4172.

<11> Field report for monument TQ 76 SW 13 - January, 1959 (Bibliographic reference). SKE4171.

Sources and further reading