Roman Britain may have left a far grander mark on south Wales than previously thought. Archaeologists using ground-penetrating radar in Margam Country Park near Port Talbot have identified what they say is the largest Roman villa ever found in Wales—about 572 square meters in size and likely once the hub of a major agricultural estate. The scan shows a corridor-style villa with two wings, a front veranda, at least 14 rooms, and surrounding defensive works, along with a separate 354-square-meter aisled building that may have served as a barn or meeting hall, per the BBC. The structures lie less than a meter below the surface in the park that has never been ploughed or built on, raising hopes for unusually intact remains.
Project lead Dr. Alex Langlands of Swansea University said the site has the potential to be "Port Talbot's Pompeii." He said the building appears "really impressive and prestigious," probably once decorated with mosaics and statues and occupied by a local elite. Because most Roman finds in Wales are military, the discovery of such a substantial estate suggests the region was more integrated and affluent in the Romano-British period than often assumed. Langlands argued the site could force a rethink of south Wales' role in the Roman era, saying it shows the area was not merely a frontier but home to high-status rural centers comparable to those in southern England.
The exact location is being kept quiet to deter illegal metal detecting while researchers focus on conserving the site and securing funding for future excavation. The ArchaeoMargam project, led by Swansea University with the Neath Port Talbot council and Margam Abbey Church, is involving local schools and residents and will present initial findings at the end of the week. Officials say the villa helps fill a major gap in Margam's story between its Iron Age hillfort and medieval abbey and could boost tourism in a town better known today for its troubled steelworks, per the BBC and Wales Online.
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