A ROMAN VILLA IN THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume I, Issue 62, 13 November 1880, Page 2 (Supplement)

A ROMAN VILLA IN THE ISLE OF WIGHT

The tessellated floors of several rooms of a Boman villa have been recently digcovered at Morton's farm, about half, way .between Brading and Sandown. The floor of the principal room, which ia about sixteen feet square, presents a moat curious and interesting mosaic pavement in several compartments; In the centre, in a circular compartment/ is a head of Dionysus, in his most youthful form, with flowing hair; by his side is a ' thyrsue. In one of the compartments is a most carious scene, which will doubtless give rise to much conjecture. On the left is a human figure dressed in a tunic, with a cock's head, and> instead of feet, claws with a spur. He stands in presence of a small house, raised high!, with a ladder up to it. On the right side are two winged animals, whether chimaßrse, or dogs, or tigers ia doubtful. At the first /glance this cock-Headed figure and these twinged .animals suggest a Gnostic and Mithraic Origin. It cannot, however, be the Gnostic god Abraxas, as his characteristics .were, besides the cook's head, serpent's legs, a lorica and a shield- In , the more probable view it is a jew d 1 esprit and nothing deeper, like the caricature scenes frequent ia the Fompeiian wall paintings, viz., a bird in a smock-frock like a farmer, watching two cats at play, the fowl-house in the background. The picture is interesting from its deviating from the hackneyed list of subjects generally taken for that purpose. In another compartment is a youthful figure holding a trident in his harfd, as if raised in the act ot striking a figure which crouches before him.- Tbis figure is doubtless a gladiator termed retiarius, who usually carried a three-pointed lance called tridens, and a net, which he endeavours to throw over his adversary, and then attack him with, the trident when he was entangled. The other compartments are greatly injured, and very little of 'them can be made out. The pavement is composed of rather course tesserae of only three colours — black, white, and red. The black and white are made of stone, while the red -are made of brick. Numbers of bones and oyster shells were found over bhe pavement in excavating this room. On part of the floor were heaps of ashes, as if fireß had been lighted on the pavement, which bears evident marks of having suffered from fire. The state of the floor, like that of the villa at Carisbrooke, and other Roman buildings generally throughout England, indicates the barbarism which prevailed after the departure of the Eomans. Traces of the' occupation of a savage people are frequently found; fires have been kindled on the beautiful tessellated floors; the bones of sheep, deer, and various other animals strewn about the rooms' speak very clearly of the coarse repasts which succeeded the refined banquets of the countrymen of Lucullus and Apicius. Some coarse pottery has been found, bat only one piece of painted pottery has been discovered. Portions of wallpainting also occur, one fragment bearing a little bird nicely painted.- The room with hhe mosaic pavement is surrounded by other rooms, with a rude kind of tessellated pavement, the walls of which, about a foot high, are etill remaining. A coin of Gfallienus was discovered, which would fix the date of the villa at about 263 a.d. On the reverse is a stag with the word Diana. A great number of different animals are found on the small bronze series of his, reign, being such as were sacred to the various divinities sought to be propitiated .on account of the fearful pestilence which raged throughout the Boman Empire daring his reign.

Eise ov Butteb and Cheese at Sea. — When the schooner, Eddie Pierce, from Boston,' bound to Baracoa, Cuba, was couth- east of Nantucket, about 300 miles from Sandy Hook, 18th June, a firkin of butter was seen to rise in the water. Others followed until three hundred and twenty-seven had come to the surface. Boxes of cheese also came up, to the number of twenty-four, and were secured,, when the schooner turned back to Boston, where her owners filed a libel for salvage. The marks on the packages were illegible. There are tw.o theories regarding the, origin of the butter and cheese .thus found," derelict" at sea. One is that some unknown freight vessel had been lost at that Bpot, and that the packages were released by, its breaking up. The other theory is that the butter and cheese were lost from the compartments of the Aiwhoria after her collision with the Queen, near that place, recently, and. that the refrigerators in which, the packages were stored had only begun to weak up when the Eddie Pierce arrived, upon the scene.— Scientific American,