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With it's Edwardian elegance and 21st Century vitality, Folkestone has the right blend of style and confidence to welcome its guests. Few places could offer finer views as the coast spreads itself in a wide arc of blue around the coast to the Dungeness headland.
It is also a place for some traditional seaside favourites, candyfloss, cockles and whelks, a sandy beach and a sheltered harbour. And standing sentinel on the cliff-top is Martello Tower No 3, waiting to welcome those adventourus enough to climb to its doors. Roman VillaThe discovery by Mr S E Winbolt, a visiting teacher, of a stone drain protruding from the cliff edge in 1923, led to one of Folkestone’s most impressive Roman finds.
The following year, work began on the excavation of a sizeable Roman Villa. It was possibly the home of an admiral in command of the British Fleet (Classis Britannica), with his headquarters based in Gessoriacum (near Boulogne).
The excavations revealed that the villa was built on the site of an earlier, smaller building, built around AD43, before the Roman invasion, which had been enlarged over a period of 300-400 years. It was probably occupied from the later part of the 1st century to the 4th century. |
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| Remains of Roman Mosaic Floor |
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| Roman Villa |
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Certainly the most important relic of Roman civilisation and occupation in Folkestone, and one of the largest in Kent, the villa clearly had impressive Channel views. 197 feet long, with more than 50 rooms, one of which contains the remains of mosaic flooring, the main building also had a fronting corridor and two large wings.
The site was covered in 1950 to provide protection. In periods of dry weather, the outlines of the walls can be seen ‘scorched’ in the grass. |
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