A Man Was Digging Up His Property When He Made A Monumental 2,000-Year-Old Discovery

Back in February 2015 a man called Luke Irwin decided to do some construction work on his idyllic countryside home. As builders got to work, demolishing an old barn, they came across something quite remarkable buried deep under the ground.

1,500 Year Old Secret

This discovery had remained hidden for 1,500 years, and was about to change his life forever. It would prove that doing a home renovation was definitely worth the time and money.

Astounding Discovery

For Luke Irwin, a luxury rug designer building work on his property led to the revelation of a hidden gem so incredible that it changed the entirety of his career. Born in Dublin, Ireland, Irwin was once a pupil at the prestigious Eton College near Windsor, England. This would lead him to such a momentous occasion.

Years Later…

And after leaving school at 16, years later he started his own rug design business in 2003. Nine years later, he and his wife Alice moved with their young children, Otis and Violet, to a restored 17th century farmhouse in the Wiltshire village of Brixton Deverill.

Love At First Sight

As soon as they saw the house, they just knew it was the one. “When we went to look at this house, we turn into this gate, and my wife starts shaking,” Irwin explained in a 2016 promotional video for Luke Irwin Rugs. “Saying I have to live here. I have to live here.” Back then, they had no idea what was in store for them.

A Piece Of Magic

In February 2015 workers were at the home ready to install a new bathroom. Whilst they were there, Irwin asked them to install an electricity connection in a barn in the courtyard, for his son. This didn’t seem like a problem, they went to check it out.

Initial Plan

They decided to deliver power to the building using overhead cables. However, Irwin had strict instructions that the connection had to be buried beneath the ground. So the builders got to work to follow the instructions, and began digging a trench across the garden. It wasn’t long, before one of the workers started to shout.

What Caused Him To Be Startled?

As they hit 1.5 feet below the surface, they had stumbled across something awe inspiring. They had uncovered a perfectly preserved mosaic, which consisted of an intricately placed pattern in grey, cream and orange tiles. Well for Irwin, who had been particularly passionate about history since his childhood, this was the start of a fascinating journey.

Rare Significance

This was no ordinary find, there was a lot of significance to it, and so Irwin immediately reached out to the archaeological department at Wiltshire County Council. When he sent them a photograph of what they had found, they came to the scene quickly. The next day, they had arrived on the Irwins’ farm and were utterly astounded by the unexpected discovery – which one expert described as a “million to one chance.

Everyone Interested In The Find

As word spread like wildfire about the discovery, the heritage organization Historic England became interested. However, they only had enough money for a small-scale excavation. Luckily, Iwin and some friends were glad to contribute towards the costs, making it possible for experts to study the site of the mosaic in more detail which he was so excited about.

Fascinating Truth

During a joint dig between Historic England and Salisbury Museum, the fascinating truth about the family’s dream home started to emerge. Apparently, the mosaic had first been laid as part of an extensive Roman villa that once stood on the land, constructed between 175 and 220 A.D. And that was just the start of the discovery.

Roman Ruins

Apparently, the three-story building, which was nicknamed Deverill Villa, might once have been more than 750 square feet. “This is not a subtle country house,” explains Historic England’s Dr. David Roberts on Irwin’s website. “It dominates the landscape, and it is visible from the nearby Roman road. It is very overt – it is almost violent in the landscape. It is clearly a family making their mark.”

Uncovering Artifacts

While excavating the site, archaeologists also uncovered a number of artifacts that disclosed more information about the people who lived there many years ago. They also found pipes that would have formed part of an underground heating system, a Roman well and even child-sized coffin carved from stone. It was truly incredible and revealed a lot about the history of who used to live there.

Truly Incredible

What was quite incredible, was that the newly discovered coffin had been hiding, but was just sat in plain sight, being used as a flower planter until one of the visiting archeologists pointed out that it was in fact significant.

More Significance To Discover

Elsewhere, experts discovered a collection of oyster shells, which seemed to suggest that the inhabitants of the villa must once have had a lot of money. An interesting observation.

Hiding In Plain Sight

Amazingly, the coffin had been hiding in plain sight, used as a flower planter until one of the visiting archeologists pointed out its significance. Elsewhere, experts discovered a stash of oyster shells, suggesting that the inhabitants of the villa must once have had money to burn.

More To Find

Interestingly, these weren’t the only artifacts that the team discovered from excavations on the Irwins’ property. In just a small part of the excavation site, they discovered pottery from both the Bronze and Iron Ages, flint from the Neolithic era, and fragments of 13th century ceramics, which were all miraculously buried alongside other Roman objects. But that wasn’t all.

Dating Way Way Back

According to Irwin, archaeologists even found evidence that the site had been inhabited during the Mesolithic period, from around 10,000 B.C. Supposedly, the villa was repeatedly redesigned and remodeled from the time it was built right up until the 4th century A.D. He couldn’t believe that this was in his garden, right under his nose.

Right Under His Nose

However, it didn’t stand the test of time, and collapsed just like the empire. Instead, there is evidence that wooden frameworks were raised on the site well into the 5th century. They just kept discovering more and it was mind blowing.

Murky Period

To historians, the time period between Roman and Saxon rule of England is very cloudy. There has proven to be intriguing evidence of early Saxon influence on the pottery found at the dubbed Deverill Villa – around a century before the colonists were thought to have arrived in the region.

Hiding Fascinating Revelations

With this in mind, archaeologists believe that Deverill Villa could still be hiding some fascinating revelations about the past. However, Historic England is currently unable to meet the costs of further excavations.

Buried Beneath The Soil

In order to protect the discoveries for future generations, they were reburied beneath the Wiltshire soil for years to come. As it turned out, the fragile mosaic was in fact covered after just 24 hours of exposure.

A Line Of Rugs Inspired By The Mosaic

He was even inspired to develop a line of rugs influenced by the mosaic. “The link to the collection is my perpetual desire to be immersed in history,” he explained. “It’s the sense of wonder. It’s just how time drifts on.”

Determined To Learn More

He wants to learn more about his ancient home, and to determine whether there are more treasures to be found.

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