276 



(lit a ^oman killing at Potag, umx Jean, 



By the Rev. G. S. Master. 



}N a paper read before the Wilts Archaeological and Natural 

 ) History Society, at their Congress at Wilton, in September, 

 1870, upon a remarkable deposit of Roman pottery in Holbury 

 Copse, near West Dean, it was intimated that further investigations 

 in a meadow at no great distance were likely to result in the dis- 

 covery of a villa or other building of some importance. The external 

 walls of an enclosure, found by careful measurement to contain an 

 area of 59ft. by 48ft. 10in., had already been laid bare, and it was 

 naturally expected that the excavation of the internal area would 

 disclose some objects of interest, beyond those of which mention had 

 already been made. This conjecture has however turned out to be 

 erroneous, the laborious and tedious process of laying bare the 

 entire space down to the level of the undisturbed clay, which here 

 overlies the chalk, having issued in nothing more than the formation 

 of a ground plan, and the obtaining of certain data respecting the 

 building. These I proceed now to place upon record. 



By reference to the plan it will be seen that a large slab of 

 Portland or Purbeck stone lies across the southern wall of the en- 

 closure. It was upon this, curiously enough, that the workmen's 

 crowbar — used for probing the ground in search of foundations — 

 accidentally lighted. The turf was removed, and the stone un- 

 covered. It lay at the depth of about a foot from the surface ; its 

 dimensions were 3ft. 9in. by 2ft. 6in. ; its thickness from 3 to 4in. 

 It was found to be imbedded in a massive wall of flints set in 

 excellent mortar, the foundations reaching to a further depth of 2ft. 

 6in. below the stone, which is now supposed to have marked the 

 entrance to the building. From this point the walls were traced and 

 followed round the angles of the enclosure, until the whole were 

 visible. The North and South walls were found to be of the 



