North Leigh Roman Villa

North Leigh Roman Villa was built around the 4th century on a site of an earlier occupation. The villa buildings are laid out in three low ranges around a central courtyard and was probably home to a wealthy Roman, although probably native to the Cotswolds.

The partly exposed foundations were first unearthed in 1813 and once excavated revealed the extent of the building. The villa consists of over 60 rooms including a suite of hot baths, kitchens and a formal reception room. The jewel in the North Leigh's crown is the near complete red and brown mosaic floor, which can be seen through the windows of the building which protects the floor from the Cotswolds weather. The floor is thought to have been designed and built by workers from the Corinium School, in Cirencester.

North Leigh Roman Villa is situated close to the line of Akeman Street, a pre-Roman track utilised by the invaders and rebuilt, to become a major route across the Cotswolds from Cirencester-Corinium to St Albans-Verulamium.

The villa is about 600 metres from the road, reached by walking along an unsurfaced track.

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