March 8, 2008
Roman villa excavation appeal
Why is it that other newspapers haven't followed the Times of London's lead in actively promoting public support of archeology and historic preservation?
An excavation is about to start at one of the most important Roman villas in Western Europe. Its spectacular mosaics were saved by readers of The Times five years ago after being placed on the World Monuments Fund's list of the most endangered sites.One of Britain's leading archaeologists is to explore the 1.6 hectare (4 acre) site around Brading Roman Villa on the Isle of Wight. Barely 15 per cent of it has been excavated and the dig is expected to last five years. . .
The finds could include mosaics, although it is unlikely that they would match the quality of those within the villa itself with their depictions of peacocks signifying eternal life, Orpheus charming the beasts of the forest and Tritons, or sea deities, carrying reclining nymphs on their backs.
Posted by David on March 8, 2008 10:08 AM
Some years after I left school, the remains of a small Roman Fort were found in my home town. What struck me was that if you had asked the proverbial intelligent schoolboy "If there were Roman remains in the town, where do you think they would be?" there were only two plausible guesses, one of which would have turned out to be right.
Posted by: dearieme on March 8, 2008 1:49 PM
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