XXVIII.—Notes on the Discoveries of Roman Remains which have taken place at various times in London

Extract

Whatsoever may have been the real character of the Edifices of Roman London —that most unsettled and open question—it seems to be an indisputable fact, that there must have been within the city many dwellings in which were to be found ornamental pavements, varying in character and beauty, perfection and intention—no less than in the difference of the localities in which they have been brought to light. There was once in the history of the metropolis, a wonderful opportunity for ascertaining what Genuine Reliques of Londinium really existed in London: but at that unparalleled time the exigency of rebuilding a ruined city was so pressing, and the taste and understanding for antiquities so exceedingly limited and low, that almost nothing was done in respect of their discovery, their record, or their preservation. In all these particulars Dr. Woodward, John Strype, Thomas Hearne, and John Bagford, were Antiquaries incomparably in advance of their age; notwithstanding all the want of knowledge and the countless mistakes which may be charged upon them by their successors, whom they have really instructed.