Exciting new evidence at Cheviot Quarry could finally provide us with the answers that we’ve been looking for as an Early Neolithic settlement is unearthed, with potentially more to come in the next phase of site stripping. Our team of archaeologists working at Tarmac’s Cheviot Quarry has completed their investigations of the Early Neolithic building and associated waste pit clusters. The structure, which is believed to have been a house, consisted of 12 postholes arranged in a symmetrical, rectangular formation, although the eastern end was offset and slightly wider. Internally the structure contained two central pits set within a central burning/hearth area. The pits have produced sherds of Carinated Bowl, charred hazelnut shells, cereal grains, charred wood and burnt bone and flint tools. The burning area indicates a centrally located hearth within what was probably a thatched timber-framed building.
To date, a number of Neolithic post-built structures/houses have been discovered on the site but these have been much smaller and a different shape to the current discovery. This most recent house is one of less than half a dozen of this type known in Britain and it adds an important piece of evidence to the corpus of these types of sites known in Britain and the first one to be found in northern England. The presence of hazelnut shells from the central pits and postholes provides the opportunity to get some of the most accurate dating so far available for this house type. Work will now begin on analysing the remains, identifying the various materials and piecing together a picture of the life led by the first of our pioneer farmers who settled in the Milfield plain. Please keep an eye out for our updates.