|
Period IV.
Thus, the north-west part of the earliest bath suite seems to
have comprised an open courtyard (palaestra) in the
well-known manner of most bath-houses; this may have been
paved with tiles as some were found laid down on the subsoil
in this area.
Room 51, of unknown dimensions and purpose at this
stage of the excavation, lies outside the palaestra of
the earliest baths; its walls, built from the same materials
as those used in these baths, were 1 foot 6 inches wide, with
a doorway (2 feet 6 inches wide) at the south corner giving
access to a room floored with a tessellated pavement of coarse
tesserae, cut from red and buff tiles and set in opus
signinum over a bedding of the same material and varying
from 3-6 inches in thickness. This room could belong to the
baths in Period III, but this cannot yet be shown beyond
doubt.
Finally, little beyond conjectural reasons can be suggested
for the demolition of such a large and elaborate bath building
and the construction of the second baths in the following
period. Certainly, the first bath building was solid enough to
have lasted much longer than the 55 years of its life, but
there is always the possibility in a bath-house that fire may
have compelled the various reconstructions and caused its
final destruction; this is lent additional support by the fact
that many of the mosaic fragments recovered in Room 46 showed
signs of heat quite consistent with the fall of burning
roof-timbers.
(b) The Living Quarters
Very little has come to light in the area north-west of
Room 50 where the living accommodation, etc., of the first
villa may lie. Two floors (Fig. 3, Section C-D, Layers 15 and
21), of opus signinum and hard white mortar (the former
associated with a section of wall built of coursed
bonding-tiles upon a ragstone foundation) and a drain channel
cut through this floor which removed part of this wall, are
the only signs of occupation in this area so far. Much more
work, however, is needed in this area in order to establish
the purpose of these floors and their relationship to the bath
building.
Period IV, c. A.D. 120-180: The Bath Building
Excavation this season in the north-west part of the
second bath building has resulted in the recovery of the
north-west wall terminating Rooms 40 and 41.
The complete length of Room 40 is now known to be no
less than 46 feet 6 inches, that of Room 41 rather
shorter at 34 feet; they both share the same north-west wall,
which was built upon a length of wall belonging to the earlier
bath building. One would expect Room 40 to be sub-divided into
two smaller units by a partition wall, but none was found in
spite of thorough examination for robber trenches; on the
other |