Between 2016 and 2018, Cotswold Archaeology carried out archaeological excavations of disused rugby pitches in Stoke Gifford. These revealed a previously unknown Roman site, which began as a simple enclosed farmstead that was probably established around the time of the Conquest. Over the following centuries the settlement developed in a series of phases, such that by its 4th-century peak the main building had evolved into a substantial winged villa. While the estate was affluent rather than palatial, the finds recovered from the site reveal widespread contact with the wider Roman Empire, reaching as far as the Mediterranean and perhaps Egypt. From its burials to rare artefacts, this unexpected site tells us much about Roman life in the Bristol region.
