232 



on Jemain^ of |loman J) tolling at 

 Pannmgton WSkh 



By the Rev. E. H. Goddaed. 

 Y attention having been called by a letter from the Rev. J. 

 B. Smeaton, Vicar of Hannington, to certain Roman 

 remains lately brought to light in that parish, I visited 

 the spot and found in the middle of a ploughed field, known as the 

 " Old Ploughed Ground/" belonging to the Manor Farm, Hannington 

 Wick, on the right-hand side of Nelland's Lane, some two miles 

 from the village of Hannington, and within a short distance of the 

 River Thames, a small portion of a Roman tessellated pavement 

 which had been uncovered a day or two before. A large part of 

 the surface of the field was strewn with tesserae, with here and there 

 a bit of pottery or broken tile or brick ; and it appeared that though 

 the labourers on the farm had always known of the existence of 

 " them little squares 33 and of " old foundations 33 in various parts 

 of the field no notice had ever been taken of them beyond digging 

 up the stones when the plough happened to hit upon them and 

 carting them away to mend the roads. Lately, however, the farm 

 has changed hands, and the present occupier — Mr. Wall — as soon 

 as the facts came to his knowledge called attention to them and 

 expressed a wish that the field should be properly examined and the 

 remains uncovered. Time, however, pressed, for the field was 

 wanted for ploughing again at once — so that whatever was to be done 

 must be done forthwith. Accordingly, on the 23d of October, the 

 services of three labourers having been secured, with the help of the 

 Vicar, Mr. Wall, and other volunteers, the surface soil was carefully 

 removed, and the pavement " A " exposed to view. This measured 

 15ft. in length and 7ft. 6in. in breadth, and seemed fairly perfect 

 except at the southern end and the sides. It consisted of stripes of 

 red and white tesserae. The central stripe was white, 9in. in width, 

 and formed of eight rows of tesserae, the red stripes on each side of 

 it were each 3ft. broad, while the white stripes bordering the sides 

 were apparently originally of the same width as the central stripe, 

 though only four or five rows of tesserae now remain — the outer 



