• MERIDIAN
• Monday 14 June 2021, 10:18am

A 200-year-old guide revealing the lost treasures of one of Britain’s largest and most luxurious Roman villas has been uncovered at Blenheim Palace.

In its heyday, North Leigh Roman Villa in Oxfordshire had a total of 60 rooms; including three bath suites, 16 rooms containing mosaics and 11 more with under-floor heating.

The villa remained buried for almost 1,500 years until 1813 when it was excavated by architect Henry Hakewill on land owned by the Blenheim Estate.

Hakewill worked on the site for four years (1813-16) just as the Napoleonic Wars were ending and wrote a guide to his excavations shortly after the dig was completed.

Among the finds was a near-complete mosaic floor, which was almost entirely carried away by locals within a week of having been dug up.

The destruction was so complete that only the detailed drawing of the mosaic in Hakewill’s guidebook survived.