Crofton Roman Villa facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Crofton Roman Villa |
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Crofton Roman Villa, museum
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| General information | |
| Location | Orpington grid reference TQ454658 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 51°22′22″N 0°05′16″E / 51.3729°N 0.0878°E |
| Construction started | c. 140 |
| Demolished | c. 400 |
Crofton Roman Villa is an ancient Roman house in Crofton, Orpington. It was a home for people for about 260 years, from around 140 AD to 400 AD. This villa was the center of a large farm, covering about 500 acres. That's like 380 football fields! The farm had other buildings, fields, meadows, and woods all around it.
The house changed many times while people lived there. At its biggest, it probably had at least 20 rooms. Today, you can still see the remains of ten rooms. Two rooms show parts of their original floors, called "opus signinum" floors. These were made from crushed tiles mixed with mortar, making them very strong. Three other rooms have "tessellated" floors, which means they were decorated with small colored tiles called tesseras.
You can also see parts of the Roman central heating system, called a hypocaust. This system used hot air flowing under the floors to warm the rooms. There were two types: one with channels and another with pillars holding up the floor. Small items found at the site are also on display.
The villa is very close to Orpington railway station. It's also not far from Lullingstone Roman Villa, another interesting Roman site near Eynsford, Kent.
Contents
Discovering the Roman Villa
How Crofton Villa Was Found
The Crofton Roman Villa was found by accident in 1926. Workers were getting ready to build a driveway for new council offices. As they dug, they found some old Roman items.
Early Digs and Later Studies
First studies by archaeologists at that time confirmed that a Roman villa was there. However, the site wasn't fully explored until 1988. The Kent Archaeological Rescue Unit (KARU), a group that saves old sites, did more work then. They published a book in 1996 that shared all their exciting discoveries. Today, a modern building protects the villa's remains, so you can visit and see them.
Gallery
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An outside view of the building protecting the villa.
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The hypocaust, an ancient Roman heating system.
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Inside the protected Crofton Roman Villa.
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A close-up of a Roman floor.
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Remains of a room at the villa.
