NORFOLK, ENGLAND—An excavation in a field next to a nursery in the town of Aylsham has turned up two pottery kilns, thousands of broken pots, late Roman coins, and pieces of jewelry, according to a report in the Eastern Daily Press. Among the most notable finds is a piece of kiln lining with the finger and thumbprints of its Roman maker clearly visible. Archaeologists believe that the nursery is on the site of a Roman villa that included a bathhouse. John Davies, chief curator and keeper of archaeology with Norfolk Museums Service, notes that the site provides insight into what rural Norfolk was like in Roman times, as contrasted with urban sites such as Caistor and St. Edmund. The presence of the kilns also raises questions. “It’s very interesting—were the kilns a small-scale industry or were they serving the villa?” asks Davies. To read about another Roman site in England, go to “A Villa under the Garden.”
