Vandals sack Roman-era estate and bathhouse just discovered in UK
By Laura Geggel - Editor 15 hours ago
The Roman-era estate's remains include a cylindrical building and a bathhouse. (Image credit: MAP Archaeological Practice)
Shortly after archaeologists unearthed a large Roman-era estate in the community of Eastfield, in the United Kingdom, vandals trespassed and damaged the ancient site, news sources report.
According to archaeologists at Historic England, the finding is "easily the most important Roman discovery of the last decade," The Guardian reported. News of its stateliness likely attracted the vandals, who brought metal detectors and trespassed on the site on the night of April 14. It's unclear if anything was taken, but parts of the fencing and land were damaged, local police said, as reported by the BBC.
"We are aware of a number of incidences of illegal activity at the site of the newly-discovered Roman buildings at Eastfield over the past week," Keith Emerick, inspector of ancient monuments at Historic England, told the BBC. "As the archaeological potential of the area has been publicly known for some time, it is a hotspot for illegal metal detecting, also known as 'nighthawking.'"
Like many archaeological discoveries in the United Kingdom, the estate was found ahead of a construction project. Before a new housing development could be built by Keepmoat Homes in the county of North Yorkshire, archaeologists surveyed the area; they were stunned to discover the well-preserved remains of a large complex, The Guardian reported.
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