- Celts and Romans -
Romanization is also clearly seen in the emergence of the villa, which symbolizes
the injection of surplus wealth into romanized country houses, elaborate mosaics,
bath-houses and underfloor heating (Percival 1976; Ferdiere 1988: 157-200).
For Gaul, a good starting point has to be Agache's work in Picardy (1975, 1978),
which located a large number of sites with a double courtyard, one containing
the principal residence, the other surrounded by subordinate buildings serving
various functions (d. Estn:es-sur-Noye and Warfusee-Abencourt - Figure 8.2).
This type of plan is not unique to Picardy, however, being equally common in
the Rhineland and Aquitaine (Wightman 1975, 1985; King 1990). Most seem to
have emerged in the first century AD, generally earlier in the south than the north.
Not all villas were of this double courtyard type, nor were they all as regular, as
sites like Koln-Mungersdorf and Mayen demonstrate. In Britain, courtyard villas
are exceptional in the first and second centuries, the norm being a relatively small
and simple cottage or winged corridor house, as at Park Street, Cox Green and
Ditchley (Percival 1976: 91-105). Few such sites had elaborate mosaics, bath-houses
or underfloor heating at an early date. Exceptions do exist, however, along the south
coast, in Essex and in north Kent, reflecting different emphases in the speed with
which romanized country housing appeared (Cunliffe 1973; Detsicas 1983; Rodwell
1978 ).
Figure 8.l Aerial photo of the extensive courtyard villa complex at Warfusee-Abencourt
(Nord) in Picardy. The main residential complex lies to the left of an extended courtyard over
400 m long, along the sides of which are the clear traces of numerous subsidiary buildings.
(Photo courtesy of R. Agache.)(^123)