Meet the Romans – Free Entry All Weekend

Found by a Gamekeeper Chasing a Ferret

In 1864, a gamekeeper on the Earl of Eldon's estate near Yanworth was digging out a ferret that had gone to ground when he uncovered mosaic flooring that had lain buried for well over a thousand years. What he'd found was one of the best-preserved Roman villas in Britain, a country house built up over three centuries from a handful of simple rooms into a sprawling residence for Roman Britain's wealthiest.

The National Trust has looked after the site since 1924, and archaeology here keeps reshaping what's known about the end of Roman Britain. Its mosaics remain largely in their original positions, alongside hypocaust underfloor heating and two separate bathhouse suites built around the natural spring the Romans chose the site for. For Heritage Open Days, the villa drops its normal admission charge and fills with costumed interpreters playing residents, servants and visitors, demonstrating the crafts, cooking and routines of daily life at the villa nearly two thousand years ago. Characters are on site throughout both days and there's no need to book.

A silver spoon found here is inscribed with the name Censorinus, thought to be a member of the household, and there's usually someone in character on hand to talk through who he might have been.

Saturday 12 – Sunday 13 September 2026 · Chedworth Roman Villa, Yanworth, Northleach, Gloucestershire GL54 3LJ · Starts 10am