This mosaic has become the symbol of Fishbourne.

The palace lay buried and unknown until 1960, when a workman discovered it by chance when digging a ditch, he noticed pieces of mosaic in the ground he digging. Nobody could have guessed the largest Roman Villa to be found it Britain was about to be uncovered. A few earlier chance discoveries had been made but nobody at the time saw the significance of them.

Cupid on a dolphin - mid-2nd century.

Tiberius Claudius Cogidubnus was the adopted Roman name of the local Chieftain (King of the Belgae), unlike many of his countrymen he welcomed the Romans and was well rewarded for his efforts. He was made a 'Legate' this entitled him to sit in the Senate in Rome. His kingdom known as Regnum by the Romans was regarded as independent of the province of Britain. The luxurious palace at Fishbourne is most likely his.

Why Fishbourne? Well the river provided an excellent inland deep-water harbour close to their main military barracks at Chichester. It was also in friendly territory. The local tribe had a long history of trade with Rome. The palace dates back to 43AD and contains some of the countries oldest mosaics. It was probably a military base at first then developed into a lavish residence in 75AD, most likely by Tiberius Claudius Cogidubnus. After the Romans had left Britain, Saxon raiders destroyed Fishbourne in 285AD, it was never to be re-occupied. The remains of a man killed in the raid can be seen in the museum. The museum itself opened in 1968.

A victim of the Saxon raid that destroyed Fishbourne?	This reconstruction gives a flavour of what the Palace was like.	A hypocaust to heat the Palace.

The Roman garden has been faithfully restored to its original plan and much of the palace is in a purpose built building. The excavation of the site continues still, in 1996 another large building was discovered. It is believed that this could a military headquarters.

Model of Roman Galley at the quayside	This model shows the Palace at it's peak
One of the many excellent displays at the museum	A Roman gardner in his potting shed