Monument record MDO19057 - Roman building, Olga Road, Dorchester

On Wednesday, while a labourer named George Drew was engaged in cutting a deep drain behind No. 8, Olga-road, Victoria Park, he struck the finest tessellated floor recorded as found at Dorchester. It is not, at the time of writing, fully uncovered, and as yet its general plan is not very easy to understand clearly. It may, however, give our readers some idea of this most noteworthy relic if we try to furnish a rough description. The centre of the length of the floor is a rectangle, 14ft. by about 8ft. Each long side of this is joined by a rectangle about 7ft. each way to another rectangle of which the limits and dimensions are not as yet clearly defined, but it is about 12ft. by 7ft. In short an oblong of 36ft. by 14ft. would enclose the whole of the five divisions above mentioned. It must, however, be borne in mind that the oblong would touch the ornamental part of the floor only along the ends of its central rectangle and the outer sides of its two end rectangles. Perhaps in a word we may call the plan of the ornamental floor two transverse oblongs, eachjoined by a square to a larger transverse central oblong. And this ornamented floor was surrounded, and the four nearly square recesses in its plan were filled in, with plain red pavement of tesserae fully 2in. square. Those of the ornamented portion are 1in. square and often less. How far on every side the border red flooring extended seems so far uncertain.
Part of this red flooring was noticed three weeks ago or so, but it drew little attention, being considered to be only a passage or pathway. It is a hard task to give anything like a clear description of the very elaborate decoration of the ornamented portion of the floor. The central rectangle bears a large octagon, placed so that an angle points to each side and each end of the floor. The spandrils or spaces between the octagon and its enclosing square are filled with a flowing scroll ornament, including what looks like stiff but effective flower buds. In the middle of the octagon, surrounded by very beautiful interlaced work, is an object something like a Greek cross with circular ends. This ornament, the centre of the whole floor, is probably some mystic symbol. Can it be an abnormal “swastika”? The remainder of the rectangle shows two squares at each end of it, that is close to the sides of the widest part of the ornamental floor. These squares, which may be about 2ft. each way, are filled with effective interlaced design. Next we have to notice the two squares joining the central rectangle to these at the ends of the floor. Oblongs, six feet by three feet, in these squares show two bands each containing six right angled triangles, standing top to base, alternately black and white. Between these bands is a very striking two-handled vase. One of these two vases is within a circle; the other not. The ornament of the two large end rectangles of the floor was not at the time of writing clearly to be made out. The different members of the design of this wonderful floor are bordered and separated by bands of the interlaced “guilloche” in which the Romans so much delighted. The “Greek fret” also appears in several places. We ask our readers to picture to themselves all this wealth of decoration carried out in white, buff, black and red tesserae, the colours being used with an admirable feeling for effect. This is especially conspicuous in the varied hues of the two vases. The elaborate ornament and complicated shape of this extraordinary floor make description most difficult and inevitably very lame. But enough, it is hoped , has been to enable our readers to realise that this was a large and splendid floor. It must have belonged to a noble tablinum or some other chief room of a sumptuous mansion, with other handsome rooms adjoining. Standing there, by unfinished modern “villas,” we are set wondering what manner of man it was that dwelt in that house, and (may be) saluted Constantius Chlorus on that very floor. But it is a description, not an imagination, that we offer to our readers. And we end our description by saying that, to our eyes, the floor does not seem to have had much traffic on it. It appears, in part at least, hardly at all worn. This would seem to put its date far down in the time of Roman occupation of Dorset. The floor is on the property of Mr. A. C. Higgs, of Weymouth, who takes the greatest interest in it. Writing to The Times on Wednesday Mr. J. J. Foster, a Durnovarian now residing in London, says:-- “Within the last few days a Roman pavement of considerable extent and of remarkably good design has been uncovered at Dorchester. It has been found in a portion of ‘Fordington Field,’ recently set apart for building purposes, and is, in fact, in the garden of one of a row of unfinished cottages termed Olga-road. Those who are familiar with the locality will realise its exact position when I say it is about 250 yards south of the union workhouse, and rather less than 150 yards west of the Great Western Railway cutting. Speaking less precisely, it may be described as about 250 yards in a westerly direction from the amphitheatre. The site of this fine pavement is important since, so far as I am aware, few, if any, Roman remains have been found the outside the walls of Durnovaria on this side, always excepting the amphitheatre to which reference has just been made.”
Mr. Foster expresses the hope that the whole of the adjacent ground will be carefully examined, and that what has been already found will be speedily placed in the care of competent custodians. On Tuesday evening another interesting find was made on the site of the unearthed pavement. A labourer named Edward Wills was continuing the excavation of the floor on the east side, that is, towards the railway station, when he came upon some large flat stones, such as were used for sepulchral purposes. Then three cinerary urns of black unglazed ware came to light, filled with calcined bones. A more primitive interment had evidently been made on the same site, for human bones showing no trace of fire were also found, together with decayed horns of some animals. This discovery was made at a spot over which the tessellation in all likelihood originally extended. It gives some coluring (sic) to the popular idea – not an expert pronouncement, by any means – that the pavement appertained, not to the villa of some wealthy resident, but to a temple, where animals were sacrificed. This theory would account for the presence of the animal remains; but of course they may be accountable for on some other ground, and possibly antiquaries may be able promptly to explode this hypothesis of the profanum vulgus. With the view of protecting the tessellation from the injury incidental to the visits of indiscriminate crowds, and also doubtless, not without an eye to the possibilities of the Roman pavement as a money-making investment, Mr. Higgs had it enclosed with boardings and caused hand-bills to be distributed in Weymouth and Dorchester announcing that admission would be granted from ten till one on payment of a shilling, and from two till six on payment of a sixpence. A good many paid for admission, especially during the hour when the sale of building land drew a business company to the estate. We are informed that Mr. Higgs is in communication with the authorities of the British Museum in regard to the remarkable find, and is expecting next week a visit from experts from the great national institution to view the pavement.


Tesselated pavement from this site and relaid in the County Museum. No plan of it was ever made. The pavement was found in 1899 when a drain was dug. <> Drew

"The pavement when whole formed the floors of three rooms communicating by two doors, 7' 4" wide. From observations and measurements made when the pavement was in situ, its three divisions seem to have extended across a building 26.5 feet wide from wall to wall. The spaces between the geometric decorated panels and the walls werer filled with large red tesserae... The middle room measured 26.5 feet by 17.5 feet. The width of the other walls is uncertain, the north and south sides having been destroyed before discovery. [Account in the Dorset County Museum]

The area is under lawns and gardens. There were no surface finds and the householders had never found anything. (4)

<1> Moule, H J, 1901, Tessellated Floor found at Dorchester in 1899, 192 (Article in serial). SDO9790.

<2> Moule, H J, 1901, Tessellated Floor found at Dorchester in 1899, 47-9 (Article in serial). SDO9789.

<3> Miles Barnes, W, 1901, The Annual Business Meeting, xxviii-xxix (Article in serial). SDO9788.

<4> Colley March, H, 1900, On some Roman pavements and some intrecci of this country, chiefly with respect to their meaning, 162 (Article in serial). SDO9787.

<5> 1899, Discovery of a Tesselated Floor in Victoria Park (Article in serial). SDO9786.

<6> Moule, H J, 1901, Dorchester Antiquities, 20-21 (Bibliographic reference). SDO9439.

<7> Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey Map 6in, 1930 (Map). SWX1540.

[SY68719009] ROMAN VILLA [R] (site of)

<8> Rigg, J, Field Investigators Comments JR, F1 JR 20-Aug-1954 (Unpublished document). SWX1255.

<8.1> Drew, Lt-Col C D, Oral information, correspondence (not archived) or staff comments: (Lt Col C D Drew. Curator, Dorset County Museum, Dorchester), 21-May-1953 (Verbal communication). SWX2099.

<9> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England), 1970, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume II (South East) Part 3, 570, no.212; 581, no. 221 (Monograph). SDO150.

<10> National Record of the Historic Environment, 1430575 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Aug 22 2024 7:35PM