British Archaeology

A collection of metal Iron Age and Roman-era artifacts unearthed by a metal detectorist on an island in Wales has been declared national treasure.

Ian Porter made the discovery in 2020 while exploring pastures and a spring on Anglesey, located off the western coast of Wales' mainland, according to a statement from Amgueddfa Cymru — Museum Wales.

"I was so excited when I found these items," Porter said in the statement. "To think that the last person who touched them lived almost two thousand years ago and it shows some of the history of the island."

Occasionally, police investigators find themselves announcing archaeological discoveries, rather than criminal findings. In 1984, for example, police oversaw the recovery of the Iron Age bog body (a naturally mummified corpse found in a peat bog) later called “Lindow Man” in Cheshire, UK. On January 25, 2024, the Police Service Northern Ireland (PSNI) found themselves doing just that.

The civilian discovery, and subsequent PSNI excavation, of a 2,000 year old bog body at Bellaghy, in the Londonderry county of Northern Ireland, is significant because of the rarity of prehistoric human remains that include soft tissue preservation. As with The Lindow Man, the initial investigations were conducted by the police in case the remains were those of a recent murder victim – making the location a crime scene rather than an archaeological site.

It was only following radiocarbon dating of the remains from Bellaghy that the body, by then identified as that of a young male, was shown to have lived during the Iron Age.

A “very rare” clay figurine of the god Mercury, one of fewer than 10 ever found in Britain, has been discovered at a previously unknown Roman settlement that once sat next to a busy port – but is now 10 miles from the sea.

The site of the settlement, in the modern hamlet of Small Hythe (or Smallhythe), near Tenterden in Kent, now sits among fields, but was once an important link in the Roman empire’s import and infrastructure network in southern England and the Channel.

The rules around how archaeological finds are handled in Scotland are being rewritten after a surge in metal detecting across the country.

It is the first time in 20 years that a consultation on the process for assessing and preserving ancient artefacts has been held by the Crown Office, which is responsible for the Treasure Trove Unit (TTU).

John Logue, the King’s and Lord Treasurer’s Remembrancer (KLTR), opened the consultation and said: “The role of treasure trove is to ensure that objects of cultural significance from Scotland’s past are protected for public benefit and preserved in museums across the country.

“We want to ensure that artefacts found in Scotland continue to provide maximum benefit to the public in understanding the significance of Scotland’s archaeological heritage.”

The 12-week consultation will inform a report and recommendations on the future of the TTU, and aims to gather views widely, from museums and public heritage organisations to metal detecting clubs and individuals with an interest in archaeology and heritage.

Since the last consultation there has been a marked rise in the number of people involved in metal detecting.

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Metal detecting is growing in popularity and is giving rise to a lively context of professional and community archaeology throughout Scotland, and in a challenging financial climate for museums and heritage organisations.

Dr Stuart Allan, chairman of the Treasure Trove Review and formerly keeper of Scottish history and archaeology at National Museums Scotland, said: “We want to hear from the public and interested parties on a range of topics about the operation and potential of the Treasure Trove system.

“This review is tasked with improving and strengthening the Treasure Trove system for the immediate future and beyond.”

Logue added: “I would urge all those who have an interest in the future of the Treasure Trove system to fully engage with the public consultation.”

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An amateur metal detectorist in the United Kingdom has unearthed a "remarkable" 3,000-year-old gold clasp that would've been used to fasten clothing during the Late Bronze Age (1000 to 800 B.C.).

Jonathan Needham discovered the artifact while metal detecting in Staffordshire, a county in central England, according to a statement from The British Museum.

"Straight away people said it was 3,000-year-old gold and at that point we were able to celebrate," Needham told BBC News. "We were punching the roof at what we had found."

An intact chicken egg estimated to be around 1,700 years old is believed to be the only of its type in the world, after scientists found it still had liquid inside.

It was discovered during a dig in Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire between 2007 and 2016, with researchers saying at the time that it was a “genuinely unique discovery”.

During the course of the excavation, archaeologists broke three other eggs which released a “potent stench”, but a fourth egg remained intact.

Experts from Oxford Archaeology think the waterlogged pit may have been used as a sort of Roman wishing well.

Now, a micro scan has found that the egg still contained the yolk and egg white and is believed to be the only intact egg from the period.

Following the collapse of Roman Britain, Londoninium (London) fell to ruin and was abandoned during the 5th century AD.

Anglo-Saxons settled 1.6 km’s to the west of the former Roman capital, establishing a small town known as Lundenwic in the area of present-day Covent Garden.

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Archaeology South-East, which is part of the UCL Institute of Archaeology, has announced the discovery of Saxon material during excavations of the Sainsbury Wing at the National Gallery.

According to the researchers, the discovery now indicates that the town’s urban centre extended further west than previously thought. Excavations revealed a hearth, postholes, stokehole’s, pits, ditches, and levelling deposits from the western suburb of the town. Carbon dating of the hearth has returned a date range from between AD 659-774.

Archaeologists in London have made the “exceptionally important” discovery of a complete wooden funerary bed, the first ever discovered in Britain.

The remarkably preserved bed, described as “unparalleled” by experts, was excavated from the site of a former Roman cemetery near Holborn viaduct, central London, alongside five oak coffins. Prior to this dig, only three Roman timber coffins in total have been found in the capital.

Wooden remains from the Roman era in Britain (AD43-410) rarely survive to the present day but, because the waterlogged burial site adjoins the now underground river Fleet, its graves were well preserved.

The funerary bed is made from high-quality oak and has carved feet and joints fixed with small wooden pegs. It was dismantled before being laid within the grave of an adult male in his late 20s or early 30s.

Archaeologists find remains of insects that ‘hitchhiked’ here nearly 2,000 years ago

From plumbing to public baths, the Romans left their mark on Britain’s health. But it may not have all been positive. Archaeologists working at Vindolanda, a Roman garrison site south of Hadrian’s Wall in Northumberland, have unearthed fresh evidence that the Romans also brought us ... bedbugs.

Dr Andrew Birley, who heads the Vindolanda archaeological team, said: “It is incredibly rare to find them in any ancient context.”

Stonehenge hasn’t given up all its mysteries just yet, even though scientists are working to cut them away one by one. The latest scientific effort has been pointed towards identifying the origin of a pair of unidentified sarsen stones—numbers 26 and 160—that don’t neatly fall into past identification efforts.

The results may stretch our understanding of Stonehenge a bit—76 miles southeast, to be more precise.

In a new study published in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, researchers employed X-ray fluorescence spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry to analyze the chemical composition of 54 sarsen stone fragments culled from the 5,000-year-old site. This allowed the team to show that stones located at England’s Stonehenge have a more diverse provenance than previously believed.

Over the past few years, scientists have traced the origins of many of the remaining 52 stones at the site. These stones fall into a variety of differing categories, some grouped together and others standing solitary. The bluestones of the inner circle come from the Preseli Hills in Wales, and a variety of the sarsen stones (made of silcrete sandstone) were traced in 2020 to roughly 19 miles from Stonehenge. That site, known as West Woods and located in the southeast Marlborough Downs, was a key source of stone for Neolithic people—both because of the widely available supply and natural access points.

But not all the sarsen stones were linked to West Woods, and stones 26 and 160 remained mysterious. Plus, some original Stonehenge stones no longer reside at the site, making tracing quite tricky.

The team looked to find a match for the non-West Woods stones by investigating sarsen debris that had been excavated from Stonehenge trenches in 2008. While much of the debris did tie to the Marlborough Downs area—which includes West Woods, Monkton Down, and Totterdown Wood—the team also matched some debris to Bramdean, Hampshire (31 miles away) and Stoney Wish in East Sussex (76.4 miles to the southeast).

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“It is also possible that the analyzed fragments were pieces of saccharoid sarsen hammerstones of their pre-forms, or small blocks brought on-site for ceremonial or non-ceremonial purposes,” the authors wrote.

All the team can know for sure is that not all the fragments originated in the West Woods. While the findings answer some questions, they are far from the last word when it comes to understanding Stonehenge.

A metal detectorist in Wales unearthed a Roman silver “ligula”, commonly known as a “toilet spoon”. The discovery, made in June 2020, has now been declared a treasure by Welsh authorities, along with other items.

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The museum said it has a very long handle with a small “circular bowl” on one end. The spoon was originally straight but was “bent out of shape in two places.”

A variety of uses have been suggested for Roman ligulae, including the extraction of cosmetics and perfumes from long-necked bottles and their application to the face or body, the extraction and application of medicines, and their use during medical procedures.

Silver ligulae, as opposed to the more common examples of copper alloy, are more frequently associated with these medical applications – possibly due to silver’s antimicrobial properties. This spoon contributes valuable archaeological evidence of medical knowledge and personal hygiene practices in Roman western Britain.

The 1996 Treasure Act designates the ligula as Treasure because it is over 300 years old and contains more than 10% precious metal. It will now be evaluated by the Treasure Valuation Committee to ascertain a fair market value. The toilet spoon will then be available for purchase by nearby museums for the determined value.

The Cowbridge and District Museum has expressed interest in acquiring this treasure find after it has been independently assessed by the Treasure Valuation Committee.

A new study of early Bronze Age examples from Luxembourg and Britain, led by researchers from the universities of Mainz and Ferrara, finds indications of a patrilineal descent system for western Eurasian Bell Beaker communities. / Family relationships that link Britain to Luxembourg.

Poignant prehistoric burials containing the remains of an adult and child laid in the grave as though embracing in death have long fascinated archaeologists. A new study of early Bronze Age examples from Luxembourg and Britain provides insights into family relationships in prehistoric communities and the transition from collective to individual burial in 3rd millennium BC Western Eurasia. The results provide the first genetic evidence that Bell Beaker communities in Northwest Europe buried children with their biological mothers and other close biological relatives.

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The cause of death and reasons for joint burial are still unknown. No marks of violence were found on the skeletons. Further research for the project uncovered over a hundred joint burials of adults and children similar to the ones described here across Eurasia, dating from the 3rd and 2nd millennium BC. The researchers could propose many explanations for joint burial and simultaneous death, perhaps violence, infections, or pandemics, but the astonishing similarities between the burials from Luxembourg and Britain suggest that communities, indeed perhaps families, in Bell Beaker Europe mourned their dead according to widely held and closely followed formal rituals. “The body of a woman, lying as though sleeping, clasping a child in her arms, is poignant and emotive. Although that peaceful image may be deceptive, it still reflects a lost meaning retained across thousands of miles and amongst many diverse cultures,” emphasized Dr. Maxime Brami.

A squashed, muddy piece of jewellery dug up in a field has been found to be more than 400 years old and officially declared treasure.

Jacob Purdie, from Lancaster, found the gold pin head in a field in Burton-in-Kendal in Cumbria while metal detecting last year.

It was ruled to be treasure by the county's coroner in December and is now awaiting valuation.

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In quick succession last year he discovered the filigree gold pin head and a quarter noble - a rare gold hammered coin.

Single gold coins do not count as treasure so Mr Purdie paid the landowner half its value and kept it.

The pin head is believed to date back to the 16th Century and, as it is gold and more than 300 years old, qualifies as treasure under the Treasure Act of 1996.

An iron age workshop, where blacksmiths were forging metal about 2,700 years ago, has been discovered in Oxfordshire, complete with everything from bellows protectors to the tiny bits of metal that flew off as the red hot iron was hammered into shape.

Radiocarbon tests date it between 770BC and 515BC, during the earliest days of ironworking in Britain. From about 800BC, the art of forging iron became widespread in the British Isles for tools and weapons and the iron age takes its name from the mastery of this metal.

LONDON, Jan 25 (Reuters) - Archaeologists in Northern Ireland have uncovered well-preserved remains of a teenage boy dating back up to 2,500 years - including bones, skin and possibly a kidney - in a rare find that may shed new light on the region's ancient history.

The body was found in a peat bog - a wetland environment which can aid preservation of organic matter - in the village of Bellaghy after police archaeologists were alerted in October to the presence of human bones on the surface.

Detective Inspector Nikki Deehan said on Thursday police were initially unsure whether the remains were ancient or the result of a more recent death, but radiocarbon dating showed the time of death was between 2,000-2,500 years ago.

More treasure was discovered in Norfolk in 2022 than any other county, according to new figures.

Metal detectorists reported 95 finds in the county compared with 83 in Hampshire and 81 in Kent.

The British Museum, which runs the Portable Antiquity Scheme (PAS), said 2022 was a "record-breaking" year for reported finds.

A spectacular brass guard that would have protected the sword arm of a high-ranking Roman soldier some 1,800 years ago has been reconstructed from more than 100 fragments found at Trimontium, the Roman fort complex in Scotland.

The extraordinary jigsaw puzzle has been pieced together by National Museums Scotland (NMS) in Edinburgh, and the arm-guard will now be loaned to the British Museum’s forthcoming exhibition on life in the Roman army.

Made in the second century – with brass strips overlapping like an armadillo’s scales – it is one of only three known from the whole Roman Empire, and the most intact.

Amateur archaeologists in England have unearthed a stunning Roman dodecahedron — a mysterious class of objects that has baffled experts for centuries.

The dodecahedron — a 12-sided metal shell about the size of a grapefruit — was found this past summer during a dig in a farmer's field near the Lincolnshire village of Norton Disney, located about 35 miles (56 kilometers) southeast of Sheffield.

A previous geophysical survey, which had detected underground areas where the Earth's magnetic field had been disturbed, had revealed what looked like a buried pit at the site, and metal detectorists had already found Roman coins and broaches in the same field, said Richard Parker, the secretary of the Norton Disney History and Archaeology Group, an organization of local volunteers.

Parker was making a cup of tea nearby when a shout went up from some of the volunteers, who'd just unearthed the dodecahedron in one of the trenches the group made at the site for the two-week dig.

Archaeologists have unearthed a 1,400-year-old tomb holding the remains of a teenage girl and child, as well as delicate jewelry, in an Anglo-Saxon cemetery in Lincolnshire, eastern England.

The two people, whose age and relationship researchers are still untangling, were buried on their sides, with the younger child's skeleton huddled against the older girl's back. Two small gold pendants set with garnet gemstones and a delicate silver pendant with an amber mount were scattered around the teenager's head and chest bones. The grave also contained two small blue glass beads and a ring-shaped brooch.

A rare, early medieval cemetery has been unearthed in Wales and it has left archaeologists scratching their heads.

It's thought to date to the 6th or 7th Century and 18 of the estimated 70 graves have been excavated so far.

Some of the well preserved skeletons have been found lying in unusual positions and unexpected artefacts are also emerging from the site.

The dig is starting to reveal more about this ancient community - but it's also raising questions.

or centuries, historians and archaeologists have puzzled over the origins of the Cerne Abbas giant, the huge, naked, club-wielding figure cut into a chalky hillside in the English West Country. Was he a Celtic god, some sort of ancient fertility symbol, or, perhaps, a more recent lampoon of Oliver Cromwell?

Research from the University of Oxford has now concluded that the 60m tall figure in Dorset could have marked an inspiring muster station for West Saxon armies at a time when the area was being attacked by Viking warriors.

A report published on Monday concludes that the giant is Hercules, a symbol of might and courage, and his looming presence may have provided the backdrop for troops who gathered there before attempting to fend off the Vikings.

How did a young man born 2,000 years ago near what is now southern Russia, end up in the English countryside?

DNA sleuths have retraced his steps while shedding light on a key episode in the history of Roman Britain.

Research shows that the skeleton found in Cambridgeshire is of a man from a nomadic group known as Sarmatians.

It is the first biological proof that these people came to Britain from the furthest reaches of the Roman empire and that some lived in the countryside.

Recently discovered, the earliest dated English scientific instrument is going under the hammer at Christie's auction house in London on Wednesday.

The palm-sized copper-alloy "horary quadrant," which would have been used by medieval workers to determine the time of the day based on the height of the sun in the sky, is engraved with the year "1311."

This predates the next-oldest inscribed scientific instrument, the British Museum's latitude-finding "Chaucer Astrolabe," by about 15 years.

Christie's science specialist James Hyslop told Newsweek that the quadrant "is evidence of a more sophisticated workshop for scientific instruments than we'd previously thought."

"Medieval English instruments are incredibly rare, so any new discovery adds hugely to our knowledge of science at the time," Hyslop added.

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The newly-discovered quadrant is also noted to bear "remarkable similarities" to another.

This instrument was unearthed in a field in Chetwode, Buckinghamshire, England, by metal detectorist Simon Neal nearly a decade ago.

According to Christie's, who also auctioned off that find back in late 2015, both quadrants are similar in composition, shape, and the style of engraving.

This suggests that they may have been produced in the same workshop, if not by the very same hand, in the early 14th century.

His boots deep in winter mud, Greenwich Park community archaeologist Andrew Mayfield runs through the finds from the latest of the park’s volunteer digs. “We’ve found a swallow brooch, loads of clay pipes and coins, the lens of a sextant and, strangely, a Sony mobile that was buried pretty deep,” he says.

Mayfield gestures at the volunteers, who range in age from 20s to 70-something, up to their waists in earthen trenches and armed with trowels and brushes.

“We’re having a final push to uncover Charles II’s steps today,” Mayfield continues. “Steve and Karen over there are brushing up a good-looking vertical [step] for the photos.”

The dig is part of a boom in community archaeology that is seeing everyone from children to retirees joining groups up and down the country excavating Britain’s history.

The Fens of eastern England, a low-lying, extremely flat landscape dominated by agricultural fields, was once a vast woodland filled with huge yew trees, according to new research.

Scientists from the University of Cambridge studied hundreds of tree trunks, dug up by Fenland farmers while plowing their fields. The team found that most of the ancient wood came from yew trees that populated the area between 4,000 and 5,000 years ago.