The Roman Villa of Llantwit Major

In a field at Caermead, north of Llantwit Major, lie the remains of one of the most substantial Roman villas in Glamorgan. David T. Rogers turns attention to this rural site and the world of settlement and farming it represents, far from the better-known forts and towns of Roman Britain.

Excavations have revealed a complex that grew from second-century stone buildings into a villa with a bathhouse, courtyards and mosaic decoration. Part of the site was later used as a burial ground. The surviving walls and earthworks offer glimpses of a changing estate across Roman and early medieval Wales, even though much of the building is no longer visible above ground.