We have visited lots of amazing historical locations around the UK, but only recently learned that the largest Roman palace in northern Europe is near our south coast.
Fishbourne Roman Palace is near Chichester. It is tucked away in a residential street near a school. It was only discovered in 1960 when a trench was being dug for a water pipe.
Part of the site has already had houses built on it, but what they found was amazing. Just below the surface were mosaics and walls from a huge building. A rich benefactor paid for the museum to cover the site.
The site was occupied for some time and the palace had changes that included laying new mosaics over old ones.
The site has suffered from flooding and subsidence, but this mosaic is really well preserved. The archaeologists actually removed it to preserve it and found another underneath. That was moved so trust this one could be restored to its original location.
The exposed area is just one wing of the building. There is more that has been left buried for now to preserve it.
They also found traces of the garden that allowed them to recreate some of the planting.
It is a very impressive site. I have seen mosaics at Pompeii and Herculaneum that still have the buildings, but this is nearly as good.
As we left we saw a sign to a quay in the village of Bosham. We thought it was worth a look. It is a charming little place with a 10th century church and lots of nice houses around the harbour. It is not by open sea, but it is tidal and there are signs warning that some streets can flood. The tide was well out when we were there.
Many houses have boards to keep the water out. It's a pretty place and also worth a visit.
There are still lots of places for us to explore.
