Horton Kirby Villa

Roman buildings were discovered at Horton Kirby when new sewers were being installed in the 1970s. An excavation revealed two Roman buildings near where the sports pavilion is now. These were a granary or storehouse with various rooms around it and a small part of another building 50 metres away. Although a main villa house hasn’t been found, these buildings were probably part of a bigger villa estate.

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The remains of a tiled floor with small dark brown cubed tiles and larger pieces of rubble.

The floors at Horton Kirby Villa were similar to those found at Otford Church Field.

What did this site look like?

There was a large building here which housed an aisled hall (also known as a granary or storehouse). The main hall was at the centre of a corridor of rooms (at least 12) on three of its sides. These rooms had a tessellated floor (tiles arranged in geometric patterns) and there were at least three hearths which might have been used for cooking. The rooms on the eastern side of the hall might have been used as somewhere for people to stay (an accommodation suite). The building design and roof tiles found around the building suggest that the villa’s owners were wealthy people of high status.

A man and a woman taking notes on large clipboards within a trench. At the bottom of the trench there are stone foundations for a granary building.

Excavating the granary at Lullingstone Roman Villa.

Evidence for the Granary

The large building at Horton Kirby was probably a big storehouse (or granary) for storing grain. It’s larger than most Roman granaries and measures 31.8m by 16.6m. The size and style of this building is more like storehouses used by the Roman army. It had sleeper walls (stone supports) to raise the wooden floor and stop it from getting damp. These were close together which made it possible to store very heavy goods in the building.

A view across a green field with a line of trees running horizontally in the background.

The site of Horton Kirby Villa as it looks today.

Did Horton Kirby Villa Change Over Time?

We think that the buildings at Horton Kirby did change over time. The main hall may have been made smaller and the original granary might have been taken down. The main entrance was probably at the east end of the building where a large wooden door (or doors) made it possible to unload grain in the main hall. Flint found around the villa suggests that there was a metalled surface on the ground to support heavy vehicles like carts.

This villa sits on a low gravel mound on the east of the river Darent’s floodplain. We don’t know exactly where the river Darent ran in Roman times but it’s possible that the course of the river might have moved over time.

There might be other buildings at Horton Kirby that were part of a bigger villa site but these haven't been found yet.