Roaming the countryside

Lullingstone - or the Roman villa in that area - should be on everyone's itinerary while in southern England (http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/lullingstone-roman-villa/). Although incomplete, of course, the ruins are far more than a scrap of mosaic or a trace or two of long-ago burnt roof timbers. In some areas walls of lower rooms in the house probably reach to around where the original ceiling sat.

Luke took the kids and me there on Sunday afternoon, a glorious day, as well. Somehow an English 20 degrees does feel a lot warmer than 20 degrees in Sydney. We passed through Eynsford, which was something of a task due to the traffic and the narrow roads. The Darent river sparkled in the sunlight, and picnickers gathered on its banks. Unfortunately, in my enthusiasm, I failed to wind my window down before photographing, so reflections mar much of what I captured.

 Darent at Eynsford

Railway bridge

Eventually, we reached Lullingstone itself, built between the 1st and 3rd centuries AD, though nothing much is known of the original owners.

It is almost impossible to pick which photographs best represent this site, but here are some (note that these are personal and are not available for any commercial use!)

Much of the walls on the lower levels has been preserved

 An outstanding feature of Lullingstone is that it contains the earliest evidences of Christian worship in Roman Britain. Above is the floor of a "cult room" where Roman pagan rituals were once carried out. Above it had been a chapel, with murals depicting men in prayer. The cult room contained evidence that both the Roman religious practices and Christian practices co-existed for a time. It seem that different members of the same family may have chosen to follow one or the other religion.

 This is a reproduction of one of the busts found at the site.

 A well in the property was later abandoned in favour of water brought down from higher up the river.

 A model of the house, artefacts recovered, and the skeleton of a baby. Funerals for babies who died before reaching 10 days old were casual, as, before 10 days, a baby was not really a "person" in the eyes of the law.

This mosaic was in the dining area.

Eventually, we emerged into the sunlight again.

Above are views from near the centre.