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Room No. 2, 9ft. 9in. east to west by 10ft. 10in.
north to south, had a floor thirteen inches higher than the bottom of
No. 1, and was tessellated with a pattern of alternate large diamonds
and small squares, with a banded border in dark grey and white tesserę.
The south and west walls had each a projecting cornice of red concrete
at base* next the floor, and the sides of the walls were covered with
the same; it had a remarkably smooth surface, as if to receive colour.
The south-west corner of this room had a drain leading parallel with the
outside of the west wall of Room No. 1, and having a recess in the south
wall 2ft. 8in. long and 8in. deep; the wall above this recess had white
tesserae on it. The east wall had no cornice, or set off, of concrete at
the bottom, and was about two feet high towards the centre; the west
wall was broken up, level with the pavement. Toward the north-west
corner of this apartment was a doorway through the wall, paved with
white tesserae, leading into Room No. 4, hereafter to be described. The
walls of No. 2 are two feet thick, and composed of flint stones. Near
the centre, but touching the north wall, was found a large |
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mill-stone,
lying flat on the tessellated floor, with no debris under it. It may, or it may not, be a
Roman mill-stone; but its presence here is, in any case, remarkable. It
was 2ft. 6in. in diameter, and five inches deep, with a hole of six and
a half inches in the centre; scored and made exactly similar to
mill-stones now in use, but of different stone. At one foot from the
north-east corner, and for the space of about three feet, the wall was
broken down to the level of the floor. There may have been a step here
leading into Room No. 3 (next to be described), which was fifteen inches
higher than Room No. 2. Here was seen the section of the concrete on
which the tesseraeof Room No. 3 was laid; this was composed of coarsely
pounded tile and mortar six inches deep. The tessellated floor of Room
No. 2 was tolerably perfect excepting towards the south-east, where a
portion had been destroyed.
Room No. 3 has a tessellated floor of a different pattern,
consisting of a central portion of fret labyrinth, with three
* This red concrete cornice was visible in
other parts along the west wall. |