Some evidence found on site suggests that around 150 AD, the villa was considerably enlarged and may have been used as the country retreat of the governors of the Roman province of Britannia.

Two sculpted marble busts found in the cellar may be those of Pertinax, governor in 185–186, and his father-in-law, Publius Helvius Successus.

[2] In the 4th century a room, probably already in religious use, was converted to a Christian chapel or house church, much the earliest known in the British Isles.

[4] Two marble busts from the 2nd century found in the cellar perhaps depict the owners or residents of the villa, which may have been the designated country retreat of the provincial governors.

[5] In the 3rd century, a larger furnace for the hypocaust as well as an expanded bath block were added, as were a temple-mausoleum and a large granary.

In the 4th century, the dining room was equipped with a fine mosaic floor with one illustration of Zeus or Jupiter, disguised as a bull, abducting Europa and a second depicting Bellerophon killing the Chimera.

[7] The first discovery of the site was made in 1750, when workers fencing a deer park dug post holes through a mosaic floor.

[8] It wasn't until 1939 that the ruins of the villa were rediscovered by E. Greensfield and E. Birchenough when they noticed evidence of Roman walls and mosaic fragments beneath a blown-down tree.

[9] In the two earliest reports, Meates creates a rough timeline of the Lullingstone Villa ranging from the 1st century AD until the Post-Roman periods, including its purposes, room construction, abandonment, and its final destruction.

[9] In addition to the timeline and room descriptions, there are also detailed reports of the evidence found, such as pottery, coins, and soil and clay levels which indicate the time periods in which the villa is being observed.

From geological evidence, such as different layers of clay, it is suggested that the few stairs leading to the basement were built during this period rather than the 4th century AD, as originally thought.

[9] Coins found at the site provide evidence that the occupation of the villa resumed sometime during the last half of the 3rd century during the reigns of Claudius II and Allectus.

[9] Excavators were able to date the construction of the mosaic floor in Room 5 using coins depicting Constantine II that were accidentally mixed into the concrete.

In each of the four corners of the Bellerophon mosaic there is a bust of the seasons personified including winter, spring, summer, and autumn.

[22] According to English Heritage, which maintains the site:[23] The evidence of the Christian house-church is a unique discovery for Roman Britain and the wall paintings are of international importance.

Not only do they provide some of the earliest evidence for Christianity in Britain, they are almost unique – the closest parallels come from a house-church in Dura Europus, Syria.

What is not clear is whether this represented the family hedging their bets, trumpeting their apparent acceptance of Christianity, while trying to keep the old gods happy, or whether it represents some members of the family clinging to old beliefs in the face of the adoption of Christianity by others.The overall purpose of the chapel other than worship is not certain, but it is thought that it was used for "liturgical worship" such as baptisms.

[4] A Romano-Celtic temple-mausoleum complex was constructed around 300 AD to hold the bodies of two young people, those of a male and a female, in lead coffins.

[24] The two marble busts found in the Basement Room are thought to represent Pertinax, governor in 185–186 AD, and his father, Publius Helvius Successus.