Romano-Celtic temple at Pagans Hill

The Romano-Celtic temple at Pagans Hill stands on a low rise above the River Chew in Chew Stoke, Somerset. Built in the late 3rd century, it was a double-octagonal structure with an inner sanctuary and an outer covered walkway. The outer wall measured about 56½ feet across, the inner cella about 32 feet. The walls were about 3 feet thick, with pilasters that may have supported cross-vaulting. Natural light would have filled the ambulatory, creating the effect of a series of side chambers. The temple was rebuilt at least twice, once after an earlier collapse and again around 367 CE with an internal screen. A coin of Arcadius dated the site to the late 4th or early 5th century. Excavations by Philip Rahtz between 1949 and 1953 uncovered foundations, a 17-metre-deep well, and ditches containing Iron Age pottery and later Roman coins. A 7th-century glass jar and a bucket found in the well showed continued use after the Romans left. Visitors today see the low stone foundations of the temple on a grassy promontory. A 19th-century discovery once mistook the ruins for a beacon. Nearby lies a holy well and the remains of guest houses and a priest’s house. Fifteen metres west of the temple, a broken limestone dog statue, once 63 cm tall, was recovered from the well, its collar still visible. The site overlooks the quiet valley of the River Chew, a peaceful place to imagine the temple’s long vanished life.