248 



The Roman Villa at Box. 



The pavement was the most ornamental of any discovered, 

 the tesserae were of unusually small size in chocolate, blue, white, 

 buff, and red. The pattern being prepared for a square chamber 

 had been enlarged north and south by engrailed borders ornamented 

 with tulips. The border was of large cream tesserae having blue 

 and red keys alternated. 



There was no hypocaust beneath and it may have formed a 

 vestibule to the two rooms on either side of it. 



The pavement was opened in 1898 and left exposed too long, 

 when a considerable portion of the west side, which was quite 

 perfect, was spoilt by the frost. 



The weather being too wet when it was opened last year to allow 

 of its removal, the whole has been covered up again. 



Chamber VII. was 1 5 feet from east to west and had a hypocaust 

 beneath. Fourteen pillars of the hypocaust were standing, 

 averaging 8 inches square and 2J feet high, and were straight- 

 sided and roughly sawn. Two were rebated on the angle, as if 

 originally intended for jamb stones of a door. The stoke-hole was 

 in the middle of the north wall and was formed with tiles. Just 

 within this a number of loose tiles were found and several were 

 stuck together with mortar and may have been from the jambs of 

 the stoke-hole or possibly the pike immediately within it, and 

 most subject to heat. 1 



A few tesserae of small size were found, so that the pavement of 

 the chamber was doubtless of good quality. 2 



Against the south wall was a remarkable formation of stalagmite, 

 which is clearly shown towards the left of the photograph, deposited 

 by the percolation of water through the soil and walls after the 

 original water channels of the Eoman house were destroyed. 



Chamber VIII. was 10 feet from east to west by 12 feet from 

 north to south. 



1 This was borne out by one tile remaining imbedded in the concrete 

 bottom of the hypocaust, where a pillar certainly stood. 



2 A piece of an altar-tomb, apparently from the church, was found to the 

 north of this chamber, showing how everything on the site had been disturbed. 



