“It really is the heart of Roman London, where the great decisions that were made affected the rest of London and also the broader Roman world in Britain,” Henderson-Schwartz added.
Hannah Platts, a professor of ancient history and material culture at the University of London, said that the discovery of the Basilica was “enormously significant” because she also revealed how the province of Britannia was integrated into the broader Roman Empire.
“What demonstrates the discovery is that the Romans quickly instilled similar government methods that they used in other parts of the Roman world,” he said.
Archaeologists and historians had long suspected the approximate location of the 2,000 -year -old building through previous investigations. But the total range of what was hidden under the concrete floor was only discovered when the owners of the building, the Hietten properties, approached Mola to launch a new investigation.
“We knew that this was potentially the site of the first Roman basilica, but what we didn’t know was how well these remains had survived,” said Henderson-Schwartz.
From there, the team made several small test wells, or open excavation areas, to see what was hidden under the concrete floor. What they found were large sections of the Roman basilica still intact: 32 -feet long walls and 13 feet deep flint and limestone transported from Kent.
Among other artifacts, archaeologists discovered fragments of Roman ceramics, bricks and tiles, including a roof with the name of ‘London’ stamped on it and digital footprints of the manufacturer of Roman tiles.
“Literally, you can put your fingers on the fingertips on the mosaic, so it is really a tangible connection with the early origins of the city,” Henderson-Schwartz added.
