This 15th birthday celebration post revisits our exciting discoveries from Bishop Middleham Quarry in County Durham which we excavated in the summer of 2018.
The site is situated in an area rich in archaeological remains and numerous prehistoric, Roman and Medieval discoveries have been made in the vicinity during recent years. In fact, the present phase of archaeological work at the quarry was prompted by an earlier geophysical survey and trial trenching exercise which revealed evidence for past human activity on the site. Consequently, once archaeologists were deployed to investigate the archaeological material they quickly revealed evidence for multiple phases of human occupation spanning the late prehistoric, Roman and Medieval periods.
The late prehistoric period discoveries date back approximately 3000 years and include a 10m diameter post-built Bronze Age roundhouse with a nearby 6-post timber granary, a pair of Iron Age or Roman Iron Age livestock pens as well as an E-W aligned banked Roman field boundary ditch which probably formed part of a wider agricultural field system for separating pasturing of sheep or cattle and areas of crop production.
Perhaps the most exciting and unexpected discovery related to the identification of a small Early Medieval cemetery containing eleven rock-cut burials. Although the graves were aligned east to west some of the bodies were arranged in crouched positions potentially representing a continuation of pagan burial practices occurring alongside the early adoption of Christian beliefs and practices. Rupert Lotherington, who directed our excavations on the site said:
“The project at Bishop Middleham Quarry has provided a tantalising glimpse of agricultural life amongst Roman rural populations inhabiting the County Durham area 2000 years ago. Furthermore, the discovery of an Early Medieval cemetery has provided a rare opportunity to explore the burial rites practised by some of the earliest Christian communities to inhabit north-east England.”
For more information on the project please click here.