Lullingstone Villa is a 2,000 year old man made wonder not far from today's busy M25 and M20. In the 1st Century AD west Kent was one of the richest agricultural areas of Britain. Hints of this wealth can still be seen at Lullingstone, one of the grandest Roman villas in England. The occupants of this beautiful residence were powerful local nobles whose luxurious lifestyle is captured on the villa's beautifully preserved mosaic floors. The villa was built around AD 75, and later extended. Amongst the areas still visible are the mosaic floors, wall paintings, and the 4th Century bath complex. The villa's famous mosaics are believed to have been laid in the mid-4th Century.
One of the finest mosaics shows Bellerophon, Pegasus and the Chimera, and another showing Europa and the Bull from the Roman myth. Another interesting feature is an area of worship - the site of the "deep room", originally a Pagan temple to water gods. Later in the 4th Century the new owners of the villa built a Christian temple on top of the room, making it one of the earliest Christian sites in England. | 
