Country United Kingdom Demolished 5th century | Construction started 1st century | |
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Location Bancroft
grid reference SP827403 Similar Gadebridge Park Roman Vi, Sparsholt Roman Villa, Woodchester Roman Villa, Spoonley Wood Roman Vi, Piddington Roman Villa | ||
Bancroft Roman Villa is a Roman villa in the Bancroft district of Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire, England. Originally a winged-corridor house, the villa eventually became a grand building with mosaics and a formal garden. The principal rooms have been marked out in Bancroft Park and the fish-pond has been reconstructed. One of the mosaics is on display in Central Milton Keynes Shopping Centre.
Contents
Map of Bancroft Roman Villa, Milton Keynes, UK
History
The first farmhouse was constructed in the late 1st century, located downhill from where there had previously been an Iron-Age settlement. In the 2nd century a temple or mausoleum was constructed on the hilltop. Around 170 AD the farmstead was destroyed by fire, but by the late 3rd century it had been replaced by a larger house. In the 4th century major renovations were undertaken. Geometric mosaics were added to many rooms and the main bath-suite was rebuilt and enlarged. In front of the villa a formal garden was laid out together with an ornamental fish-pond. On the top of the hill, the mausoleum was demolished and a circular shrine was built nearby.
Excavation and display
The villa was partially excavated in the 1970s, and then more fully in 1983-7, becoming one of the most extensively excavated Roman villas in Britain. The villa has since been reburied to ensure its preservation, but the principal rooms have been marked out on the ground with modern stonework, and the fish-pond has been reconstructed. The mosaics have been removed from the site, and one is prominently displayed in Central Milton Keynes Shopping Centre.