Upper Newton Roman Villa

Villa

A number of Roman artefacts recovered from the area were recorded by Fenton in 1806, and although the finds are mentioned by Haverfield in his 1909 work on the Roman Military in Wales, he admitted that the exact location of the site was unknown. In 1811 Fenton describes a visit to inspect the discovery of what he considered to be part of a Roman baths in a nearby hedge bank. However, in 1960 a scatter of pierced roofing-slates, a piece of tegula roofing-tile and two pieces of “hypocaust-tile” were recovered during field-walking, which finally managed to pin-point the location, on a steep north-eastward slope above the Western Cleddau north-west of Ford. The site very likely represents the remains of a fortified Romano-British farmstead.

In 2003, Dr Mark Merrony undertook a geophysical survey which showed evidence of a rectangular building. A small excavation revealed a paved surface of large stone slabs and other evidence suggestive of a Roman building.

A small archaeological investigation was undertaken by Dyfed Archaeological Trust in May 2010 to ascertain whether the possible site of a Roman villa but no evidence of a Roman villa was revealed within the excavated area, although it remains possible that the building has been totally destroyed by agricultural activity, or is located beyond the excavation area.

Another similar site lies only 3¾ miles (c.5.7 km) to the east at Castle Flemish.

References for Upper Newton Roman Villa

  • Air Reconnaissance in Britain, 1958-1960 by J.K. St. Joseph in J.R.S. li (1961) p.131;

Map References for Upper Newton Roman Villa

NGRef: SM948265 OSMap: LR157/158

The site at Bank Farm has been referred to by many different names (Wolfscastle, Ford, Upper Newton).

Roman Roads near Upper Newton Roman Villa

None identified

Sites near Upper Newton Roman Villa