Discovery
Last month, a Roman mosaic was discovered during the excavation phase of a central London redevelopment project. Archaeologists have confirmed that the tiled floor they found dates back thousands of years, and is the largest Roman site to be unearthed in London for 50 years.
The mosaic lotus design, known as Solomon’s knot, is believed to have been part of an elite Roman dining room.
1,200 years ago, Southwark was a popular eating spot, which hosted the rich as well as military officers. This tradition has continued in recent times at the nearby Shard, where high-end restaurants attract wealthy city goers.
Once The Museum of London Archaeology has completed their assessment, the mosaic will be transported off-site where research will continue.
Construction project
The Liberty of Southwark is currently being developed near London Bridge station and Borough Market. The mixed development project will be made up of:
- 141,000 square foot of office and flexible working space
- 36 new homes
- 22,700 square foot of retail space, including 9 retail units, 12 market stalls, cafes and restaurants.
- 486 secure cycle spaces
- a community garden
The redevelopment is set to create 1,850 jobs and is scheduled to be complete in 2024.
Tradesman Talk
Have you ever discovered a relic while working on a construction project? A Roman Villa? Dinosaur bones? A Greek statue? A bee’s nest? A WW2 bomb? Lego in the garden?
Leave your story in the comments below.
2 Comments
We once dug up a skeleton of an animal in a customers garden whilst digging out for a patio sub base. When the family returned home from the school run , Unbeknown to me my colleague had decided to display the find for them on their decking ! Thinking he was time team..the customer started to get very tearful and she then explained we had dug up the remains of the beloved family dog that died years ago and she had forgot to tell where it was buried…a new burial was undertaken straight away 😬
Hi Dan, thanks for sharing your story. It made us chuckle! I’m sure if Tony Robinson was on site, he would have cleared the area and excavated the rest of the street. Hopefully the customer got over it. Cheers.