Luke Irwin and the Tale of The Deverill Villa

| In February 2015, while laying electricity cables at his Wiltshire farmhouse, rug designer Luke Irwin struck a cold, flat surface. There, about 18 inches beneath the muddy topsoil, lay an untouched Roman mosaic – a striking pattern, unseen for some 1,600 years. A mesh of vivid oranges, creams and greys, the mosaic was extraordinarily well-preserved, sparking a ‘frisson of excitement’ in the designer as he stood above it. However, this was only the very beginning, and the incredible journey that began on the edge of that field is only coming full circle now, 15 extraordinary months on. In little over a year, Irwin has learnt, via involvement with Historic England, that his Wiltshire home is the site of the Deverill Villa, one of the most significant Roman finds in decades – a vast two-storey ‘palace’ that once housed dignitaries of some importance. While Brixton Deverill may now be a sleepy backwater, the discovery of oyster shells, sarcophagi and seemingly endless ’tesserae’ block