Roman Town House, Dorchester facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Roman Town House |
|
|---|---|
The Roman Town House ruins
|
|
| Location | Colliton Park, Dorchester, Dorset |
| Built | c. 307 |
| Governing body | Dorset County Council |
|
Listed Building – Grade I
|
|
| Designated | 8 May 1950 |
| Reference no. | 104222 |
| Lua error in Module:Location_map at line 420: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). | |
Imagine stepping back in time to ancient Roman Britain! The Roman Town House in Dorchester is an amazing ruin from the Roman era. You can find it in Colliton Park, in the town of Dorchester, Dorset.
This special house was built around the year 307 AD. It was discovered by chance in 1937 and 1938. The Dorset County Council had bought Colliton Park to build a new County Hall (a main government building). Before they started building, archaeologists from the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society did some digging. That's when they found the remains of this ancient Roman house!
The discovery was so important that the plans for the new County Hall were changed. This made sure the Roman Town House could stay right where it was found. It's now a protected site, known as a Scheduled Ancient Monument and a Grade I listed building. This means it's a very important historical place that is legally protected.
Contents
Exploring the Roman Town House
The Roman Town House has two main parts, or "ranges," of rooms. These parts show us how the house was laid out.
The South Range
The South Range includes rooms 1 to 7. Today, you can see the outlines of these rooms. They are made from flint and stone walls that are now covered by grass. It's like looking at a blueprint of the house on the ground!
The West Range and its Mosaics
The West Range is made up of rooms 8 to 18. This part of the house was very special because it had beautiful mosaic floors. Mosaics are pictures or patterns made from tiny pieces of colored stone or glass.
Between 1996 and 1999, this West Range was carefully dug up again. To protect the amazing mosaic floors and other parts, a special building was put over them. This building has a steel and glass roof and sits on the original Roman foundations. It helps keep the ancient ruins safe from the weather and allows visitors to see them clearly.
Roman Walls Nearby
The Roman Town House is also surrounded by other ancient Roman remains. On its north and west sides are areas called North Walk and West Walk. These are also protected sites. Just below the surface in these areas are the remains of the Roman ramparts. Ramparts were strong walls or banks that protected the Roman town.
