Monument record MDO6248 - Roman tesselated pavement, Wimborne Minster

A mosaic pavement discovered in 1857 during renovations in the nave of Wimborne Minster. The small area of pavement observed was noted as being composed of red and white tesserae. The pavement was re-discovered in 1961, and is now displayed under a glass panel.

In 1857 an area of tesselated pavement was observed during renovations of the nave under T H Wyatt. This event was described by Dr Charles Mayo in his 'History of Wimborne Minster' published in 1860: 'Close to the base of the easternmost nave-pier, on the south side, at about eighteen inches below the present pavement, was uncovered a small piece of what appeared to be Roman tessellated pavement. The fragment, which did not cover more than two or three square feet, was composed of red and white tesserae, about an inch square. At all events it must be a piece of the floor of some former building, whether Roman or not, for it is too far below the bases of the columns to have ever been part of the floor of the present church. It has now been completely covered by the new floor, so that it it not likely that there will be another opportunity of inspecting it for some time.' and 'It has been conjectured that the Minster stands on the site of a Roman building, but we must own that a small piece of what appears to be Roman tesselated pavement existing under the present floor of the nave, and dubious assertions that traces of Roman work exist in the parts of the walls below ground are the only evidence to be adduced.' (1) Farrar quotes two short passages from an article in the Salisbury and Winchester Journal for 3 October 1857 (p6): '…during the recent excavations at the Minster, under the pillars of the nave, were discovered bases of columns, at regular intervals, a considerable length of very early and perfect tessellated Roman pavement, and a large stone pediment, clearly indicating the site of a Roman temple, immediately over which the central tower now lifts its head.' and 'The whole of the Norman piers which support the weight of the building, were removed and replaced without damage to any portion of the building. They now rest on the existing Roman walls.' (2) In 1961 the floor of the minster was lifted and relaid in concrete. The area where the tesserae had been discovered was left to last and special care taken. At a depth of nine inches, considerably higher than anticipated from the earlier reports, a thin layer of lime mortar was encountered. Unfortunately, this layer was disturbed before it was realised that tesserae lay beneath it. Work was stopped; some loose tesserae were collected, and subsequently a small patch of floor excavated. Farrar reports and discusses the findings as follows: 'The remains … now consist, firstly, of a small patch, 12 in. by a maximum of 8 in., of red and light grey (Mayo's 'white') tesserae about 1 1/4 in. square, although some are rather less - the large variety commonly used for plain or simply patterned floors, or for coarse borders of mosaics. The red were as usual knapped from Roman tile; the others were of limestone. These tesserae had been bedded in sandy mortar - soft where in contact with the under side of the tesserae but harder beneath, and, it seemed, harder and perhaps more limey in the interstices - while immediately below there was a soling, 2 1/2 in. thick, of rammed or perhaps puddled chalk, resting on fairly dark earth - whether a natural land surface or a make-up is not clear… This soling, with a smooth surface from which all tesserae had been dislodged, continues for about an equivalent distance eastwards. The remains thus measure overall some 27 in. by, at most, 11 in. wide; and this, together with a very little more of the soling at the E. end, which workmen stated was already bare of tesserae when it was pulled up, answers very well to the extent of 2 or 3 square feet of pavement recorded by Mayo. This is a factor of importance since it shows beyond reasonable doubt that the newspaper account of 1857 is inaccurate or at least misleading at the only point where we are able to check it… Mayo … makes no reference to a pattern, and the only regular feature that can in fact be discerned with In 1975 The Royal Commission suggested that the tesselated floor discussed above may be associated with the original Saxon church of St Cuthburgh. Documentary evidence suggests that this church was established by the 8th century [3]. Woodward noted that a similar discovery under the Abbey Church at Sherborne supported the theory that these pavements were Saxon in origin [4].

Record last edited

Jan 14 2010 10:11AM