A Roman town house, built in the second or early third century AD, has been found on the site of Canterbury’s demolished Marlowe Theatre.

Archaeological investigation has been taking place there since 2008 and has revealed mainly medieval and later remains relating to the Dominican Friary, or Blackfriars, founded in the early 13th century.

This part of the site was within the original precinct and discoveries have included lengths of medieval timber revetments lining earlier courses of the river.

However, recent work on the west side of the old theatre has uncovered the remains of a previously unknown Roman building and associated features. Although the site is not far from the centre of the Roman town, few large scale archaeological excavations have taken place in this area.

The site is immediately next to the branch of the River Stour that flows through the centre of Canterbury and would have been within the flood plain of the river. The Roman building, however, seems to have been on an area of higher ground within the floodplain.

Only a part of the building has been revealed as most of its walls and internal structure had been removed by quarrying in the medieval period or later.

It is thought the house, belonging to a fairly wealthy citizen, was partly made from masonry, although the walls only survive to one-and-a-half feet. Fragments of plaster found in some of the rooms indicate that the interior was well appointed, with the walls decorated with painted designs.

At least one room possessed an underfloor heating system, or hypocaust, and the tile stacks which supported its suspended floor survive in one corner of the site.

Although the area is difficult to dig due to being waterlogged this has led to the preservation of wooden and other organic artefacts, including the remains of a Roman shoe and a wooden platter from one of the medieval pits that cut into the building.