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Digging for Britain - Season 13 - Episode 02: Our Rarest Find and Biggest Dig
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00:06This land we call home has a rich and varied history stretching back thousands of years.
00:15But hidden below the surface are some amazing treasures just waiting to be found.
00:22Oh my gosh, that's insane!
00:24That's really cool!
00:25So each year across the country, archaeologists dig underground and dive underwater.
00:35Searching for fresh discoveries.
00:38The most amazing thing in British archaeology.
00:41Uncovering traces of ancient lives.
00:44Somebody's played in joy, I'm sure.
00:46And finding fascinating objects.
00:49Such exquisite detail.
00:53This year I'll be meeting the archaeologists and looking at some of their most incredible finds.
00:59I mean that is stunning.
01:02While Dr Tori Herridge is travelling the length of the country to some spectacular locations.
01:09Where I'll be dropping in on some of this year's most fascinating digs.
01:15Oh my gosh, can you see that?
01:17It's just brilliant.
01:19Oh my goodness.
01:21Every dig provides a new piece in the puzzle of Britain's forgotten past.
01:27This is the epic and unfolding story of our islands.
01:34Welcome to Digging for Britain.
01:47This week on Digging for Britain.
01:49In Norfolk, archaeologists find a mysterious block containing metal.
01:54I don't know.
01:55I mean, I like the design of it.
01:57And a CT scan.
02:00Look at that.
02:02Reveals a once in a lifetime find.
02:06The most amazing thing I've ever seen in British archaeology.
02:12In Kent, Tori investigates an Iron Age settlement on top of the White Cliffs.
02:17This gold coin is right on that era of Julius Caesar's crossing.
02:22And discovers a tribe that seemed quite Roman long before Britain became part of the Empire.
02:28The Romans haven't conquered, but the culture has.
02:32And we go behind the scenes.
02:35Morning all.
02:36Let's do the morning brief then.
02:37At one of the largest and most complex archaeological excavations in British history.
02:42I have never seen anything like this.
02:45I mean, I've got goosebumps.
02:46Phenomenal.
02:59Every so often something turns up which is just utterly extraordinary.
03:04Something the archaeologists will describe as a once in a lifetime find.
03:10And that is the case for this next discovery.
03:13Which is not only unique in Britain, it's unique in Europe.
03:18And I just feel so lucky to be getting such an early glimpse of it.
03:23And then to be sharing that with you.
03:32We're heading to a location which is 20 miles outside Thetford.
03:40Earlier this year, a team from Preconstruct Archaeology were carrying out a routine excavation
03:46in advance of construction of a new housing development.
03:512,000 years ago, this was the territory of the Icane tribe.
04:00They lived here during the Iron Age.
04:09As the dig got underway, there didn't seem to be anything of real significance.
04:15But dig leader Peter Crawley had a sneaking suspicion that there was something here.
04:22It felt like one of these special sites that you do get every so often.
04:25I don't know, there was a gut feeling, something special about this one in particular.
04:29I just had a good feeling about it.
04:33And it wasn't long before archaeologist Richard Thorpe found something out of the ordinary.
04:40With his metal detector.
04:42So, you know, I'm sort of detecting along.
04:45And I detect this very large signal while I was instantly excited.
04:49Because I knew we had something special.
04:51They dig down in the spot where Richard found his strong signal
04:55and film the exciting moment of discovery.
04:58This looks like the base of a bowl, that looks like a bowl.
05:01At first, the team believes they have perhaps a pile of metal bowls,
05:06buried together as a hoard.
05:08And the top bit?
05:09I don't know. I mean, I like the design of it.
05:14But one of the finds is covered with intriguing decoration.
05:17Oh, wow.
05:18Oh, my God.
05:19That's obviously going to be a separate thing.
05:20I don't know.
05:21I don't know.
05:22Oh, do you think it's one of those?
05:24Like, oh, like a carnix.
05:26Oh.
05:27Oh, my God.
05:27Best possible.
05:29The team are excited about this possibility.
05:32If they're right, this could be an incredibly rare Iron Age object, a carnix.
05:39This is a type of decorated trumpet.
05:43Iron Age tribes from Italy to Scotland use them to intimidate enemies
05:48and rally warriors on the battlefield.
05:51Only one carnix has ever been found in Britain.
05:55And in fact, even then, it was only part of one.
06:00That's about the right side.
06:02One.
06:05It's only part.
06:06Yeah, I was thinking.
06:08Here is heading to the...
06:09Here is the half.
06:10Nice.
06:11I mean, if you've found a carnix, then you've...
06:14I've won.
06:15Yeah, I just quit.
06:16I've done it.
06:17I've done it.
06:18Yeah.
06:20With such a potentially important find,
06:23the team makes the decision to block lift the entire horde at the same time.
06:29You get a bit of that.
06:30We just lay it across there.
06:32They dig around the horde and cover it in plastic wrap to keep it secure.
06:36Yeah, it doesn't have to be all the way down.
06:38It is certainly the best thing I've ever found as an archaeologist
06:41and probably will be the best thing I will find as an archaeologist as well.
06:47You know, it's a dream come true, really.
06:50They send the block to be x-rayed to see what's hidden inside.
06:57But there are so many objects packed closely together,
07:00it's hard to make sense of the image.
07:02At this point, project officer Gary Trimble is beginning to wonder
07:07if the horde could contain something even rarer than a carnix.
07:12The results weren't conclusive,
07:14but they give some tantalising sort of evidence
07:18that we may actually have, rather than a carnix,
07:21it may be a boar standard.
07:27Standards like this, topped with the figurine of a boar,
07:31were carried into battle by Celtic tribes.
07:39We've got a quandary.
07:41Is it a carnix or could it be another object of INA state, a boar standard?
07:47If it does turn out to be a carnix,
07:49it'll be a really significant find and these are extraordinarily rare.
07:55Now, if it turns out to be a boar standard, that's even rarer.
07:59To find out which of these two exceptionally rare objects they're dealing with,
08:05the team turns to more advanced imaging,
08:08taking the block to a local hospital for an out-of-hours CT scan.
08:13And they film the moment as the exciting results emerge.
08:20I love modern technology because it's just started working.
08:26Look at that.
08:28That is absolutely exceptional.
08:33What is that thing, this thing here?
08:36Yes, look.
08:37We're going to have to dig it out and find out, aren't we?
08:40Wow.
08:40That's really outstanding, isn't it?
08:44It's got cut-out decoration on it.
08:47That detail is extraordinary.
08:51It's beyond, it's absolutely beyond belief, this.
08:54Yeah.
08:55I mean, this isn't even once a lifetime occurrence, is it?
08:58This is rarer than that.
08:59Yes.
09:00It's rarer than that.
09:02This is several people's lifetime.
09:05This is the most amazing thing I've ever seen in British archaeology.
09:19The CT scan reveals the mystery object is a Bohr standard.
09:25The very first one ever found in Britain.
09:32But there was more.
09:35Hidden deeper inside the Horde, there is also a Carnix.
09:43And it's the most complete Carnix ever found in the whole of Europe.
09:49Two of the rarest objects from the Iron Age, found together.
09:58Conservator Jonathan Clarke is excavating the block under controlled conditions in the lab.
10:09So these are the objects that have been removed so far from the block.
10:12We've got multiple shield bosses, some of which were stacked on top of each other.
10:16But then of course we have the Bohr standard here, which you can see this wonderful looking Bohr's head.
10:25And I don't know whether you can make out a tusk at the end here with his lovely snout here.
10:30And wonderful curled designs surrounding the mouth here.
10:34And the eye would have had something in there, possibly an organic material or a dissimilar metal.
10:40So it really would have stood out again on this shiny copper alloy object.
10:47Jonathan has carefully extracted the Bohr standard from the Horde.
10:53But there's still a lot of work to do on the Carnix.
10:58What we've got here is the bell of the Carnix, which goes from its neck all the way around here
11:04with a crest on its back,
11:06which has got this openwork decoration in it.
11:08The Carnix itself is kind of in this roaring open mouth state here.
11:14And with this, the top jaw and the bottom here.
11:17And here we've got the wonderful little eye just visible there, which is remarkable survival.
11:23And you can even see along here the sort of serrated edge of its open mouth.
11:28As soon as you see it, you can't help kind of being not only impressed with it, but kind of
11:32charmed by it at the same time.
11:37The Carnix is made from extremely thin sheets of metal, which have become very brittle after 2000 years in the
11:44ground.
11:45You can see a large fissure and crack going along on the bell of the Carnix there, which is a
11:51really good way of seeing quite how thin the metal work is.
11:57It can be quite a prescient task.
12:00You're aware of the risks at all times.
12:06This is the most complete Carnix ever found, with the pipe, mouthpiece and bell all uniquely intact.
12:19You can see the faces really emerging here.
12:22You can see a ridge, this sort of brow of its eye here.
12:26You're really getting a sense of the Carnix's face, really.
12:32You can't help but kind of stare at its eye when you're working on it, kind of looking face to
12:37face with it.
12:42To think of it as a musical instrument, just adds this layer to it, it really does.
12:49It wasn't just decorative, it had life and screamed and made noise.
12:56In the first century BCE, the writer Diodorus Siculus wrote that the Carnix produced a harsh sound which suits the
13:06tumult of war.
13:08We're in the early days of this excavation and have so much to discover and find out about it.
13:15The work's sort of only just begun, really.
13:21The micro-excavation will take another four weeks.
13:28So, in the meantime, I've invited archaeologist Gary Trimble and Carnix expert Fraser Hunter to the Digging for Britain tent.
13:36And they've brought a modern reconstruction of one of these trumpets.
13:42Fraser, Gary.
13:43I mean, this is one of these once-in-a-lifetime discoveries, surely.
13:48There's not many of these that have turned up.
13:50Absolutely not, no.
13:51We have our fair share of hoards in Norfolk, but this is so, so different.
13:55Yeah.
13:56And really, really, really special.
13:57And this is the most complete one in Europe?
13:59Yes.
14:00I mean, this is astonishing.
14:02It is astonishing.
14:03What a find, indeed.
14:04And you've got the boar standard.
14:06I mean, what does it represent?
14:07What does the boar mean?
14:08Do we know?
14:10Boars, if you think of what boars do in the wild, you know, it's the strength and the ferocity, but
14:14also the cunning.
14:15So, boars are very fierce animals to face in the hunt.
14:18So, the symbolism of a boar is a lot about, they say, the strength of it, a very appropriate adversary
14:24in battle.
14:25This is the CT scan we had of the block.
14:30The boar's head standard there.
14:32And then the shield bosses, some of them stack within each other, you know, sort of together.
14:38And then, this is the upper part of the tubing of the carnics.
14:43Just coming round here.
14:44Yes.
14:44Yeah.
14:45And under here, you've got the belly of the carnics.
14:48Hidden under there.
14:49Yeah.
14:50Yeah.
14:51I mean, you've got the whole thing.
14:53It looks like it.
14:54So, this is another first.
14:55Yeah.
14:56This is the only one where we can be confident the tube ties into the instrument.
14:59And here.
14:59You have the complete tube, bent in half.
15:02You've got it.
15:02As we can see, this is an instrument standing about this kind of height, originally.
15:06Yeah, yeah.
15:07So, one time we can really see, this is the height of the carnics.
15:10And it shows the mouthpiece is in line with the tube.
15:13You would play this leaning backwards like that.
15:15Yeah.
15:16It just confirms that.
15:17And do you think these are deliberately placed?
15:18Or is it just about putting objects in a hole in the ground?
15:21I'll be sure it's a votive deposit.
15:23You know, this has been put in the ground for the deities, for the gods.
15:27And we think it's a deliberate placement of these shield bosses over the bell of the carnics.
15:32In other words, to quiet it down.
15:34It really feels like it's shielding the head.
15:36Yeah.
15:36It's really protecting the head.
15:37It's a very careful deposit.
15:39It's just fantastic, isn't it, to be able to use these technologies, which, you know,
15:44originally medical technologies were licking inside people's bodies, but you can lick
15:47inside blocks of earth and actually see what objects you've got there.
15:52Yeah.
15:52And when do you think this dates to?
15:5650 BC, AD 50, it's in that bracket somewhere.
15:59It's such a crucial time, isn't it?
16:01Because you've got Julius Caesar coming over, having a look at Britain.
16:05That's right.
16:06Yeah.
16:06It's a time of change and a time of turmoil and so much going, especially in the south
16:10and east of England with all this impact to the Roman world.
16:13Yeah.
16:13Yeah.
16:14Warfare and military prowess is a key part of that.
16:16So the drama of something like the Carnics and the Boer Standard in any battle, in any
16:22army, showing off with one of those things, these would have been spectacular objects.
16:26Yeah, yeah.
16:26And this is very much part of that story, isn't it?
16:33Both the Carnics and Boer Standard will soon be fully excavated and cleaned.
16:44It's incredible to imagine these fearsome beasts towering over an Iron Age army, up to
16:51two or three metres in the air, with the Carnics blasting across the battlefield.
16:58This is by far the most complete and well-preserved Carnics ever discovered.
17:04It adds to our knowledge of these incredible instruments and provides us with an iconic image
17:10of the Iron Age.
17:17As for what these trumpets sounded like, it's time to find out.
17:22As musician and PhD student Letty Stott is about to transport us back into the Iron Age.
17:44It's more tuneful than I thought it would be.
17:46Oh my God.
17:46Yeah.
17:46Yeah.
17:49Yeah.
17:50Yeah.
17:51Yeah.
18:11I love that.
18:18I'll hold something right cold
18:25You've achieved my love
18:37I'm sold
18:39And the story will grow old
18:46But you'll make this long gone
19:00Our next dig is one of the biggest excavations
19:03that's ever been carried out in Britain.
19:06It allows archaeologists to look at a whole landscape
19:09as it changes through time over thousands of years.
19:12Now, there are hundreds of archaeologists working on this site
19:17racing to record thousands of finds and features
19:21and keeping pace with a complex construction project.
19:28We're heading to Suffolk and the village of Syswell
19:3220 miles east of Ipswich.
19:37Here, construction is well underway
19:39on the new Syswell C nuclear power plant.
19:44It's one of Britain's biggest infrastructure projects
19:48but before the construction really gets going
19:51archaeologists are on site
19:53to explore and record the heritage here.
20:03More than 200 archaeologists
20:06from Oxford-Cotswold Archaeology
20:08are busy uncovering traces of human activity
20:11stretching back thousands of years.
20:20Across 70 sites
20:22they're excavating more than 2 million square metres
20:29making this one of the largest
20:31and most complex archaeological projects
20:34ever undertaken in Britain.
20:40And working at this scale
20:41offers archaeologists
20:43an unprecedented insight
20:45into Suffolk's long history.
20:50For archaeologist Rosanna Price
20:53it's a job that's close to home.
20:57I was born and raised in Suffolk.
20:59This is where I'm from
21:00and it's quite beautiful to be back, actually.
21:06We're joining Rosanna
21:07for an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour.
21:12Right, guys, morning all.
21:13Let's do the morning brief, then.
21:15Every day starts the same way
21:17in the nerve centre.
21:19Make sure they are safe for the job.
21:20Just a hindersly briefing.
21:22We have to do one of these every day
21:23on every site.
21:24Please ensure you're always wearing
21:26the correct and intact PP whilst on site.
21:28The team depends on meticulous
21:31coordination and communication.
21:34Housekeeping, walkways need to be kept clear,
21:36especially in doorways.
21:37Cleaning supplies are provided
21:38for everyone to use.
21:40We've got a lot of trainees
21:42come on all the time,
21:43but they need a bit of a mind.
21:47Marvellous.
21:48That's cracking.
21:48Cheers, guys.
21:50Everyone's ready to go
21:51and start another day.
21:52And just like that,
21:53more than 200 archaeologists
21:55file out and disperse
21:57across the huge site.
21:58So everyone's now just going to go out,
22:01get in their trucks,
22:01head over to their sites,
22:03get digging.
22:07In her role as archaeological engagement manager,
22:10Rosanna checks in regularly
22:12with each of the digging teams.
22:14This means she's uniquely positioned
22:16to give us an exclusive glimpse
22:18of the huge range of discoveries
22:21being made here.
22:22We've got sort of 20 places
22:24to visit in a week
22:25and they are spread across
22:27a massive area
22:29in Suffolk County.
22:30I mean, this is
22:31the biggest infrastructure project
22:34for a generation.
22:37Rosanna's first stop
22:38is at a site uncovering evidence
22:40of some of the earliest
22:41permanent homes in Suffolk
22:43when people were settling down,
22:46swapping hunter-gatherer lifestyles
22:48for farming
22:48during the Neolithic.
22:51Hi, Dan.
22:52Archaeologist Dan Pond
22:54is leading this area.
22:56This is looking different.
22:57You finished it?
22:58We have finished
22:58our post-hole structure now.
23:00Yeah, it's all good to go.
23:02These holes would have held
23:03upright posts,
23:04supporting the walls
23:06of what was once
23:07a Neolithic building.
23:08This is our second structure.
23:10It's made up
23:11of about 20 or so post holes.
23:13Wow.
23:13You don't get many
23:14of these buildings surviving.
23:15That's fantastic.
23:15Yeah, incredibly rough.
23:18Early Neolithic buildings
23:19tend to be long
23:20and rectangular halls.
23:22A circular building
23:23of this size at this time
23:25is very unusual,
23:26so there aren't any reconstructions
23:29of what it might have looked like.
23:31But we do know
23:32the occupants were still
23:33relying on stone tools.
23:36This is absolutely stunning.
23:38It's wonderful.
23:39It's an early Neolithic
23:41polished stone axe head.
23:42But this edge
23:43is just exquisite, isn't it?
23:46It's perfect.
23:47Quite a high-status,
23:48presumably, object
23:49because it's so beautifully crafted.
23:51So this is something
23:52pretty fancy.
23:53Have you found anything
23:54more domestic?
23:55We found a lot more pottery.
23:57I've got a couple of sheds here.
23:58So this is early Neolithic pottery.
24:00This is 4,000 to 3,500 B.C.
24:03Really, really elaborate design.
24:05So this piece here
24:08is 6,000, 5,500 years old.
24:12Yep, I survived all this time.
24:15That is phenomenal.
24:17This is the earliest pottery,
24:18our earliest finds
24:21we've had on the project.
24:22I mean, people were living,
24:24creating these things
24:256,000 years ago.
24:26Absolutely stunning.
24:30The Sizor project is vast
24:32and the team are uncovering
24:33evidence from many
24:34different periods.
24:37Very satisfying to watch
24:39the site develop
24:39over time, isn't it?
24:41Oh, definitely.
24:41You get quite
24:41mostly attached to it.
24:43Like most sites
24:44that I've been on,
24:45they've just been
24:46one specific time period,
24:47like either Roman
24:48or medieval.
24:49But with this,
24:49it's a complete landscape
24:50and that landscape is
24:52really the history
24:52of people in East Anglia.
24:56The archaeologists
24:57are spread out
24:58over such a wide area,
25:00they keep in touch
25:00using their phones.
25:04And while this team
25:05are busy investigating
25:06traces of the Neolithic,
25:09Rosanna receives
25:10an exciting update
25:11from her colleague,
25:12Will Stibley.
25:14Oh, that is fantastic.
25:15They've got a collared urn
25:17and I imagine
25:18there's got to be
25:19presumably a cremation
25:20in there.
25:21Will looks very happy
25:22with himself.
25:24I think we'd better
25:24go and have a look
25:25in person.
25:29It can take
25:29more than 20 minutes
25:30to drive
25:31between the sites.
25:34Yeah, one of those times
25:35where they're having
25:36to go at 5 to 10 miles
25:38an hour
25:38is really tantalising
25:40because you've got
25:40this thing,
25:41you want to go
25:41and see it.
25:42What can you do,
25:43I guess?
25:43You've got to stick
25:44to the speed limit.
25:48In the Neolithic,
25:49some people were buried
25:50together in large
25:51communal graves
25:53like this chambered tomb
25:54in Orkney.
25:57But as time wore on,
25:59we start to see graves
26:00of individual people
26:03in the Bronze Age.
26:06Yeah, this is fantastic.
26:08So Will only started
26:08here yesterday
26:09and he's immediately
26:10discovered this.
26:10He started on this site
26:11and that's such a classic
26:12manoeuvre to turn up
26:13and get something.
26:14Oh, wow, look at this.
26:16Oh, you've done
26:18a beautiful job as well.
26:19I mean, it is
26:20just stunning, isn't it?
26:22And it so clearly
26:23is early Bronze Age
26:24from this massive
26:25collar here.
26:26I mean, it's so exciting
26:27just to be the first person
26:29to see something like this
26:30in, what,
26:30three and a half thousand years.
26:32Yeah.
26:32It's the reason I got
26:32into archaeology
26:33to do things like this.
26:34It looks like there might
26:35be some impressed
26:36twine decoration
26:37around the rim
26:38that's already peeking through.
26:39So, yeah,
26:40it's going to be
26:40really exciting
26:41once we've dug
26:41a little bit more out
26:42to see if there's
26:43any more decoration
26:43and if it's mirrored
26:45on the accessory vessel
26:46as well.
26:48This cremation
26:49is two miles away
26:50from the Neolithic building
26:52found at the first site
26:53and it's much later in time.
26:56But so far,
26:57it's the earliest evidence
26:58of human activity
26:59that they're finding
27:00in this part
27:01of the landscape.
27:03It's quite interesting
27:04that here we have
27:05almost no evidence
27:06of early Neolithic activity.
27:08We have very little evidence
27:09right up until
27:10about two and a half thousand BC
27:12when we start getting
27:13much more early Bronze Age activity.
27:15It seems to be a real gap
27:17in the landscape here.
27:18This is an area
27:19that they just don't seem
27:20to be using or visiting
27:22during the early Neolithic.
27:24It's not until
27:24the early Bronze Age
27:25that we see
27:26any significant activity here.
27:28So there does seem
27:29to be significant variation
27:30over time
27:31in the parts of the landscape
27:33that people are exploiting.
27:35This is just an amazing addition
27:36to the story of Si as well,
27:39the story of Suffolk people
27:40through time.
27:44Seeing all these little patches
27:45of excavation coming up
27:46in the landscape,
27:47this is amazing.
27:48This is actually my history
27:49coming to life
27:50in front of me.
27:52We'll rejoin Rosanna
27:54later in the programme
27:55when even more
27:56of Suffolk's rich history
27:58is revealed.
27:59This is amazing.
28:01Sounds like it might
28:01be something pretty good.
28:16The East of Britain
28:18has always been
28:19the front line
28:20between our islands
28:21and the continent,
28:23sometimes bearing the brunt
28:24in times of conflict,
28:26at other times benefiting
28:28from peaceful connections
28:29and commerce.
28:31If I can't jump,
28:34just push and shove.
28:40Throughout the centuries,
28:42this proximity to Europe
28:43has had a unique impact
28:45on the communities
28:46that lived here.
28:50as our next dig shows.
28:54Tory Herridge
28:55is heading to Folkestone,
28:5710 miles west of Dover.
29:07The White Cliffs
29:09that run along
29:10the south-east coast
29:11are one of Britain's
29:12most recognisable landscapes.
29:16They are the first thing
29:17anyone sees
29:19when travelling across
29:20the Channel from France.
29:22Even Roman generals.
29:33It was these white cliffs
29:35that Julius Caesar
29:36described when he tried
29:37but failed to invade
29:39the British Isles
29:39in 55 BC.
29:41He described people
29:42at the top there
29:44fiercely ready and waiting
29:45to throw rocks
29:46down the troops below.
29:48But little is known
29:50about those defiant people
29:51on the clifftops
29:52who lived here
29:54along the south coast
29:56of Britain
29:56during
29:57the Iron Age.
30:02A team from
30:03Canterbury Archaeological Trust
30:05is in their third year
30:06of excavations
30:06at the site.
30:09They want to find evidence
30:11of this Iron Age community
30:12and investigate
30:13what their lives
30:14and culture were like
30:16before the Romans invaded.
30:20Geophysical surveys
30:22at the clifftops
30:22reveal at least three
30:24Iron Age roundhouses
30:25that once stood
30:26right here.
30:29Archaeologist Andrew
30:30McIntosh
30:31is leading the dig.
30:32What a view.
30:34It's such an amazing view.
30:36Often on clear days
30:37you'll see the white cliffs
30:38over in France
30:40there as well.
30:41Julius Caesar
30:42sort of remarked
30:43on a populated
30:45Iron Age settlement here
30:46and I think
30:46this is probably
30:47the settlement
30:48that he was talking about
30:50when he was looking
30:51at these cliffs
30:51and seeing how populated
30:53it was here.
30:55Since they started
30:56excavating the site
30:57the team have unearthed
30:59hundreds of quern stones
31:00heavy circular stones
31:02used to grind grain
31:03into flour.
31:05But here
31:06these quern stones
31:07were used to line
31:08drains, gutters
31:09and post holes.
31:13Even I would recognise
31:14that as a quern stone.
31:15So I mean
31:16this is fairly typical
31:17of a late Iron Age
31:19rotary quern stone.
31:20It's a big
31:21big slab of rock
31:22isn't it?
31:22It is.
31:23You're turning that round
31:24the weight of it
31:25grinding.
31:26Yeah they're very heavy
31:27so this is one part
31:28of two stones
31:29that would have turned
31:30against one another.
31:31We suspect this might
31:32be the top half
31:33of one of the quern stones.
31:35So this one
31:36has had quite a lot
31:37of work on it
31:38hollowing out this top.
31:40You can see chisel marks
31:42where they've started
31:43to work it.
31:43It's been discarded
31:44at some point.
31:45Something's gone wrong
31:46at the last minute
31:47in manufacture.
31:48It may be that
31:49on the underside here
31:51that it's split
31:53at some point
31:54when they've tried
31:55to shape it
31:56and then it's no longer
31:57functional for its purpose.
31:59So this wasn't being used
32:00here as part of
32:01the daily milling activity
32:02of a settlement.
32:03You're saying
32:03it's being made here.
32:05Yeah because there's
32:05so many we find here.
32:09The querns were shaped
32:10from local sandstone
32:12which arose naturally
32:14out of the cliffs
32:14and onto the beach
32:16right below the site.
32:19They've got quern stones
32:21coming out of their ears
32:22like broken ones
32:23which is kind of
32:24really impressive.
32:25But I mean this
32:25raw material
32:26if it's available
32:27everything has got here
32:29somehow it's come up
32:30off the beach
32:30so you're going to
32:31utilise this raw material.
32:33So exactly
32:33waste not what not right?
32:34So yeah you've got it
32:35you might as well use it.
32:37And that's more than
32:37any one settlement
32:38would need for themselves.
32:39Yeah.
32:39So the people here
32:39are making quern stones
32:41to be traded elsewhere.
32:42Yeah.
32:43They're being traded
32:43inland possibly overseas.
32:48The Iron Age people
32:49living here
32:50had such an excess
32:51of quern stones
32:52they must have been
32:54trading them.
32:57And small finds
32:58from the site
32:59are helping archaeologist
33:00Rich Best
33:01piece together a picture
33:02of cross channel
33:04connections
33:04long before
33:06the Romans
33:06invaded Britain.
33:10So pre-conquest
33:11what have we got
33:12from that period?
33:13Are these
33:13stuff here
33:14should tell us
33:15something about that time?
33:16So this gold coin
33:17is an import
33:19from northern France
33:21and sort of
33:21Flanders area
33:22and dates to
33:2358 to 54 BC.
33:25Oh right wow.
33:25So it's right on the
33:26sort of the
33:28that era of
33:29Julius Caesar's
33:29crossing and
33:30there's a lot of
33:31stuff going on
33:32like a lot of
33:32fighting going on
33:33between the Gauls
33:34over there
33:35and the Romans right?
33:36Yeah.
33:36Do you think
33:37news of that
33:37would have been
33:38coming with these
33:38coins?
33:39Absolutely yeah.
33:40I think it's quite
33:40easy to think of
33:41Britain in that period
33:42as quite isolated
33:43when really
33:44particularly in Kent
33:45and here
33:46it's a hop across
33:47the channel
33:47which I think
33:48is something
33:48that people do
33:49quite regularly
33:49and then with that
33:50the stories of
33:51what's happening.
33:52So you've got
33:53what is clearly
33:53sort of ceramics
33:54pottery stuff yeah?
33:55Yeah absolutely
33:55so here
33:57we've got
33:58parts of amphora
34:00The minute you say
34:01that word
34:01I assume it's
34:02come from far away
34:03so yeah
34:04is it Roman?
34:05It is
34:06so these are
34:07used for importing
34:08wine, olive oil
34:09and sort of fish sauce
34:11and we think
34:12these were imported
34:13around 150 BC
34:14Oh so before
34:15so pre-Roman conquest
34:17Britain?
34:17Yeah we think of
34:18sort of olive oil
34:19and wine
34:19and fish sauce
34:20as a characteristically
34:21Roman thing
34:22but there is
34:23evidently a demand
34:24for it
34:24pre-conquest
34:26whether they're
34:27using that
34:27as a way to express
34:28you know
34:29how close they are
34:29to Rome
34:30and you know
34:31their connection
34:32Rome is encroaching
34:34basically
34:34and what else
34:35have we got in here?
34:36This is quite different
34:37over here
34:37this darker stuff
34:38Yeah so
34:39this is locally made
34:41but it's
34:41imitating
34:42Roman styles
34:44so
34:44they go for
34:45rather than bowls
34:46and jars
34:47it's sort of
34:47flatter dishes
34:48and things like that
34:49So this is
34:50someone over here
34:51basically trying to
34:52make some fancy Roman plates
34:53Yeah
34:54and what's so significant
34:55about this
34:56particularly for this site
34:57is that
34:58here
34:59they are
35:00starting to
35:01sort of imitate
35:02the Roman wares
35:03quite a while
35:03before anywhere else
35:04in Kent
35:05so here
35:07that is occurring
35:08sort of
35:0825-30 AD
35:10whereas
35:11elsewhere in Kent
35:12you only see it
35:13post-conquest
35:14so maybe up to
35:15sort of 60 AD
35:16That's interesting
35:17So here
35:18they're kind of
35:18ahead of the game
35:19Right
35:20that's interesting
35:20because like
35:21the Romans haven't conquered
35:22No, but they're adapting
35:24The culture has
35:24in some ways
35:25And adopting
35:26Yes
35:27A lot of what the Romans
35:28would bring
35:29Ahead of the army
35:30comes the ideas
35:31Yeah, absolutely
35:46What's being discovered
35:47here at this site
35:48is quietly rewriting
35:49what we know
35:50about Iron Age Britain
35:51Yes, there's plenty
35:52of evidence
35:53of connection
35:54across the channel
35:55to ancient Gaul
35:56But there's also
35:57something else
35:58There's a tantalising
36:00connection
36:00to Rome
36:01The people of Kent
36:02were enjoying
36:03fine wines
36:04fine pottery
36:05but also maybe
36:06taking on
36:07the ideas of Rome
36:08This part of Britain
36:10was Romanising
36:12before a Roman soldier
36:13even set foot
36:14upon British soil
36:20And the beach
36:22is lifting me
36:23Ashes reaching me
36:25Wind is holding me
36:27Time is folding me
36:29Under the trees
36:31Down through the lean
36:33Onto the park
36:35that you came to
36:36that day
36:48Archaeology
36:49often involves
36:49recovering tiny fragments
36:51then painstakingly
36:52piecing them together
36:54until something
36:55wonderful emerges
36:56Archaeologist Meg Russell
36:58has been looking into
37:00a particularly
37:01delicious puzzle
37:07I've come to
37:08Museum of London
37:09Archaeology's
37:10storage warehouse
37:11where today
37:12new discoveries
37:13are being made
37:14by examining
37:15old finds
37:17Back in 2021
37:19a team from
37:19Museum of London
37:20Archaeology
37:21unearthed thousands
37:22of tiny fragments
37:23of ancient wall plaster
37:26They all came
37:27from a commercial building
37:28that once stood
37:30on the banks
37:30of the River Thames
37:31during
37:34the Roman period
37:38Now
37:39material specialist
37:40Han Lee
37:40is painstakingly
37:42piecing this puzzle
37:43back together
37:44to improve
37:45our understanding
37:46of the colours
37:47and patterns
37:48used in Romano-British
37:49interior design
37:52Hi Han
37:53Hi, how are you?
37:54Wow
37:55This looks
37:56absolutely fantastic
37:57What is it
37:58that we're actually
37:59looking at here?
37:59Well we're looking
38:00at a nearly
38:012,000 year old
38:02Roman painting
38:03painted during
38:04the early Roman period
38:05in London
38:06It's absolutely
38:07beautiful
38:10Han has more
38:12than 10,000 pieces
38:13of wall plaster
38:14to arrange
38:15They make up
38:1620 separate
38:17decorated walls
38:18each with a different
38:19intricate design
38:22My eyes do not want to leave
38:24this beautiful detail
38:25Can you talk me through
38:26some of the things
38:27that we're looking at here?
38:28Absolutely
38:28So you've got a beautiful
38:30candelabra here
38:31with these two knots
38:32do you see?
38:33Yes
38:33Of course
38:34The string is dangling down
38:35to little dots of pearl
38:37Those are pearls?
38:39They are
38:39Oh wow
38:40And over here
38:41where we thought
38:42were grapes initially
38:43it's actually part of a miso toe
38:45which is quite a popular thing
38:47in Roman culture itself
38:49Yeah that's beautiful
38:52I'm looking at this
38:53but I'm side-eyeing
38:54this beautiful
38:55is it a daisy?
38:56It is a daisy
38:57and this daisy
38:58is actually our star piece
38:59so everyone remembers
39:01the daisy during
39:02the period of excavation
39:03because this was one of the
39:04most sort of vibrant pieces found
39:05And I'm just looking
39:07at these little dots here
39:08are they imitation stone?
39:10They are
39:11it's imitation marble
39:12pink imitation marble
39:13It gives you that illusion
39:14of a much more expensive
39:16piece of building material
39:19By painting this plaster wall
39:21to look like more expensive
39:22and higher status stone
39:24the artist has given us clues
39:26as to what stone buildings
39:27really looked like
39:28as well as the aspirations
39:30of the Romano-British occupant
39:32Now this is some beautiful
39:35imitation stonework
39:36This is actually
39:37imitating Egyptian red pelfry
39:39It looks almost identical
39:41to the actual stone
39:42doesn't it?
39:43It really does
39:43Yeah just see how
39:44tiny bits and pieces
39:46of the crystals in the stone
39:48are done so intricately
39:50and so carefully
39:51it must have taken forever
39:53By examining each fragment
39:56in minute detail
39:57Han is also discovering
39:59tiny inscriptions
40:00which reveal even more
40:01about the artists themselves
40:04We're now in your office
40:06What have we got in front of us?
40:08Well you see the letters here
40:10look at the font
40:11It's beautifully done
40:13isn't it?
40:14Even the T itself
40:16has a thin
40:17to thick to thin
40:19kind of stroke to it
40:20and it says
40:21F-E-C-I-T
40:23has made this
40:24and if you imagine
40:26when I was talking about
40:27the way that it was scored in
40:29that could only be done
40:30when the plaster was still soft
40:33Now who do you think
40:34would do that
40:35but the painter
40:36You're not telling me
40:38this is a painter's mark
40:39This is a painter's signature mark
40:41or the group signature mark
40:43But how brilliant is that?
40:45There's not many of these
40:47In fact
40:47very few examples
40:48can we prove
40:50that the painter
40:51has scored it in
40:52when the plaster was soft
40:53That's amazing
41:02What Han and his team
41:04have done here
41:04is more than conservation
41:06it's transformation
41:10Finishing this puzzle
41:11has given us
41:12a unique window
41:13into the taste
41:14ambition
41:15and styles
41:16of Romano-British London
41:24The landscape
41:25of Britain's east
41:27has changed
41:27many times
41:28through the centuries
41:31From the draining
41:32of marshes
41:33in the fens
41:34to the arrival
41:36of Christianity
41:40But every time
41:41a new generation
41:42starts changing
41:43the landscape
41:44there's the potential
41:46that precious traces
41:47of the past
41:48may be lost
41:54It's the job
41:55of archaeologists
41:56to record
41:57and preserve
41:58the past
42:00And on our next site
42:02that's happening
42:02on an unprecedented scale
42:09We're returning
42:10to Sizewell
42:11where Rosanna Price
42:12is giving us
42:13an exclusive glimpse
42:14behind the scenes
42:16of one of the biggest digs
42:18to take place
42:18in Britain
42:21Offering a fascinating insight
42:23into Suffolk's long history
42:31This is a once-in-a-lifetime
42:33opportunity
42:33isn't it
42:34to have
42:35this vast project
42:37revealing
42:38archaeology
42:39in Suffolk
42:40We've got everything
42:41the full span
42:44One of the biggest challenges
42:46facing the team
42:47is working around
42:49all the heavy machinery
42:50on the site
42:55We're surrounded
42:56by bollards
42:58and trucks
42:58and plant
43:00and I mean
43:00there's a bloke here
43:01coming towards us
43:02in a massive HGV
43:03there's dumpers
43:04and diggers
43:05It is incredible
43:07what people can do
43:08when they work together
43:10on a vast construction
43:12like this
43:22So we're constantly
43:23working alongside
43:24active and moving plant
43:26one of the main reasons
43:27for all the PPE
43:29but you can never forget
43:30that you've got a schedule
43:31you are trying to meet
43:32a programme
43:33and there's also
43:36a great sense of teamwork
43:37and collaboration
43:41Here the team
43:43has made
43:43an incredible discovery
43:45thanks to waterlogged
43:46conditions
43:47and amazing preservation
43:49of timber
43:51This artefact
43:52dates to
43:53the Iron Age
43:57Hi Jess
43:58Hello
43:58Wow
43:59That is sensational
44:01I had heard
44:02that you had a ladder
44:03Yeah
44:04But you really do
44:05Definitely a real ladder
44:07Yeah
44:08big plank here
44:09big plank there
44:10and they've bored
44:11through
44:12this sort of
44:13circular rung
44:14from one side
44:15to the other
44:16Yeah
44:16I mean at the moment
44:17the idea is that
44:19it would have been
44:19a big water hole
44:20well kind of thing
44:21and they've put a ladder
44:22in there to get down to it
44:23if the water level
44:23was really low
44:24I mean at the moment
44:25you can see that
44:26it's already starting
44:26to fill up
44:27This is such a tangible
44:29link to the past
44:30isn't it
44:30I mean
44:30I have never seen
44:31anything like this
44:32This is fantastic
44:33What a wonderful find
44:36Local production
44:37and manufacture
44:38would have been
44:39important in the Iron Age
44:40Everyone would have
44:41been involved
44:42with craft
44:42in some way
44:44But there was
44:45some mass production
44:46too
44:48And that
44:49became supercharged
44:51in the Roman period
44:55Naomi
44:56Hi Liz Anna
44:57This is looking
44:58a lot clearer
44:59than it did
44:59when I saw you
45:00a couple of weeks ago
45:01Yes I know
45:02We've revealed
45:02the full floor
45:04So this lovely
45:05levelled floor
45:06which has lined
45:07all the way out
45:07both of these flues
45:09So really excited
45:11It's a Roman kiln
45:13and some of the pottery
45:15from the last firing
45:16has survived inside
45:17So in a very
45:19small amount of space
45:20right at the bottom
45:21of the chamber
45:21it was just
45:22chock full of pot
45:23fragments of pot
45:24None of them
45:25seem to be in situ
45:26or full vessels
45:27But as you can see
45:28in our flue
45:29we still have some
45:30pot fragments
45:31sticking out
45:32Some massive bits
45:32actually in context
45:33in here
45:34Yeah there's so much
45:35of it
45:35which has been amazing
45:36and so lovely
45:39This is one of our
45:40nicest bits
45:41Wow
45:41That's gorgeous
45:42Lovely decoration
45:43Stunning isn't it
45:45So we've had
45:45we've found that
45:46all throughout
45:46the whole future
45:47So we know
45:48that they've definitely
45:49been making that here
45:49Very high quality
45:51probably very expensive
45:52This is really impressive
45:54That's the kind of thing
45:55you would have
45:55on a table
45:56Yeah
45:56In a fancy
45:57fancy home
45:58home height
45:58Yeah
45:59I mean that
46:00I think was quite uncommon
46:01If we do find
46:02other pieces of that
46:03around the country
46:04it might have been
46:05made in this
46:06kiln here
46:07So that's really
46:08lovely to see
46:08What a delightful
46:09thing to uncover
46:13On a vast site
46:15like this
46:15it's important
46:16to keep track
46:17of where everyone is
46:20You've got to go
46:21through the security
46:22portal
46:23You've got to
46:24prove who you are
46:25get your ID out
46:27It's a definite feeling
46:28that you're stepping
46:28into the size wild world
46:33So everybody
46:34has to sign in
46:34when they get to site
46:35Everybody
46:36This is the visitor log
46:38so we know
46:39who's here
46:40This is the one
46:41that shows that
46:42everybody knows
46:42where to muster
46:43if there's an emergency
46:43and then these two
46:45show that you've been
46:46briefed for any
46:46potential hazards
46:47either in the compound
46:49or on site
46:52Right
46:53We're all signed in
46:54We can go and see
46:55the archaeology
47:03This excavation
47:04is so large
47:05that the environment
47:06varies hugely
47:07from place to place
47:11From deep mud
47:13to gravel
47:14and even sand
47:16And here
47:17the archaeologists
47:18are excavating
47:19a graveyard
47:22which dates
47:23to the centuries
47:24after the Roman
47:25period in Britain
47:26known as
47:27the early medieval
47:28period
47:28It's like being
47:30at the beach
47:30isn't it?
47:34The sandy soil
47:36here is acidic
47:37dissolving away
47:38bone mineral
47:43These haunting
47:44shadows
47:44are called
47:45sand skeletons
47:50Archaeologist
47:51Frankie Wildman
47:52is leading
47:52this excavation
47:55Ah, so this one's
47:56really clear
47:57Yes
47:57You can see the legs
47:58here
47:59and the pelvis
48:00Yes, that's it
48:01So you've got
48:02the pelvis here
48:03so you've got
48:03the left side
48:04and the right side
48:05You've got the right
48:07leg running down here
48:08and you've got
48:09the left leg
48:10running down here
48:11Ah, that's beautiful
48:11And of course
48:13these beautiful bees
48:14Look at those
48:15and the sunlight
48:15as well
48:16Yeah, they're
48:17absolutely gorgeous
48:18So these are
48:19Baltic amber beads
48:20which provides us
48:22an indication
48:23that there was
48:23a connection
48:24with the North Atlantic
48:26so Scandinavia
48:27This was an
48:28interchangeable point
48:29So you're looking
48:30at a west-east grave
48:32Yep
48:33Which is the
48:34precursor to
48:35Christianity
48:36coming in
48:37but you're also
48:38keeping the old
48:40ways as well
48:41so having the
48:42personal effects
48:43with the skeleton
48:45as well
48:45so this is why
48:46we've got
48:47these beautiful
48:47beads
48:48having been found
48:49Such a poignant
48:50connection to this
48:51person
48:52all that's surviving
48:52in the grave
48:53of them
48:53is their
48:54incredible style
48:55Yes, absolutely
48:58The team are unearthing
49:00dozens of sand skeletons
49:03but there's one
49:05that dwarfs them all
49:07a horse burial
49:10Ah, wow
49:11That is so much more
49:12defined than when I
49:13last saw it
49:14isn't it?
49:14It's awesome
49:14isn't it?
49:15Yeah, well done
49:15Geoff
49:15It's really cool
49:16We've got the front
49:17legs here
49:18and the hind legs
49:20coming round here
49:22and you've just got
49:22the shadow of the
49:23spine
49:24Yeah
49:24We've got enough of that
49:26surviving leg to work
49:28out the height of this
49:28surely
49:29Yes, so provisionally
49:30there's a height of
49:31around about 1.4 metres
49:33Okay
49:33Which in horse terms
49:35is about 13 hands
49:36Oh, a little pony
49:36I mean, these horse burials
49:38certainly more so
49:40than other animals
49:41are seen as companions
49:42for the afterlife
49:43so to speak
49:44So more than likely
49:45you would have had
49:46a grand procession
49:47that would have happened
49:48to the person next door
49:50and then they would have
49:51had the horse
49:52laid to rest
49:53with that person
49:56And it isn't long
49:57before the team discover
49:58that the horse
49:59wasn't buried on its own
50:01there are human remains
50:02here too
50:04This is a very high status
50:06Anglo-Saxon burial
50:08Oh, this is amazing
50:10So, we're in the
50:12big ring ditch feature
50:13the big grave area
50:15and they've got
50:16something sort of
50:16this size
50:18and we don't know
50:19what material it is yet
50:20but as they're
50:21uncovering it
50:22it starts off white
50:23and within sort of
50:2530 seconds
50:25of being oxidised
50:27it's turning
50:27grey
50:29down into black
50:30I mean, immediately
50:31on the phone
50:32to the specialist
50:33to see what it is
50:36Could be silver, guys
50:38Could be silver
50:39Could be silver
50:42Which would be
50:43right next to
50:43Banky's just speaking
50:44to our specialist
50:45back in the office
50:47to find out
50:48what this might be
50:49How we might
50:49treat it immediately
50:53Sounds like it might
50:53be something pretty good
50:55What it might mean
50:56about the grave
50:57but the most important
50:58thing for us right now
50:58is to know
51:00how to look after it
51:01as best we can
51:01immediately
51:02because it's clearly
51:03changing as soon
51:04as it's hitting the air
51:07Freaking cool
51:08Go on, what did they say?
51:09And that sounds like silver
51:10Oh, wow
51:11So we've potentially
51:11got a small
51:13silver artefact
51:16Finding something
51:17like this
51:18is...
51:18I mean, I've got goosebumps
51:19Phenomenal, wow
51:21The grave goods
51:22are dissolving
51:23before their eyes
51:24But the presence of silver
51:27emphasises the status
51:29of this burial
51:30To find what could be
51:32a princely burial
51:33in such a high-status
51:35Anglo-Saxon cemetery
51:36is nationally significant
51:38internationally significant
51:39and the team here
51:40going down in
51:41two and a half centimetre spits
51:43to try and catch
51:43every bit of information
51:45that they possibly can
51:48The team has now made
51:50hundreds of discoveries
51:51spanning some
51:5240,000 years
51:54of Suffolk's history
51:55from the Stone Age
51:57to the modern day
52:03Rosanna's come to the tent
52:04to show me
52:05some of the latest finds
52:12Rosanna, you've got some bits
52:14from Sizor
52:15I mean, it's an enormous site
52:16I can't believe the size of it
52:17The width of the geography
52:19and the breadth of time
52:23is almost overwhelming
52:24the amount of information
52:25that we can take from it
52:27and learn and interpret
52:29It's just amazing
52:30to be able to see
52:30what's happening
52:31across a whole landscape
52:32like that
52:33I mean, that's the value
52:33of these big digs
52:35that you're not just
52:35kind of opening up
52:36a small area
52:37you're actually able to see
52:38what people are doing
52:38right across that landscape
52:40Yeah, absolutely
52:40I mean, you would say
52:41well, if you dig a big enough hole
52:43then you'll find something
52:44and we've dug a massive hole
52:45and we found everything
52:46Yeah
52:46So you've got some objects
52:48to show you
52:50that depth of time
52:51Yes
52:52So this is about
52:5340,000 years old
52:55This is a Niantil hand axe
52:57Isn't that amazing?
52:58It is
52:58It's absolutely incredible
53:00I mean, 40,000 years ago
53:02takes us back
53:03way beyond the peak
53:05of the last ice age
53:06We're into Britain
53:07being a completely
53:08different landscape
53:09Yeah, absolutely
53:09There are no modern humans here
53:11It's just Neanderthals
53:12When you hold it in your hand
53:13even now
53:14you can feel
53:14how usable it is
53:16you know, for
53:16butchery
53:17for working fibres
53:19maybe even for woodworking
53:21It's still a perfectly usable tool
53:22It's just incredible
53:23Amazing
53:23OK, so 40,000 years ago
53:25and then actually
53:26we're getting
53:27relatively close
53:28to the present now
53:29Yep
53:29A little 4000 BC
53:31sort of era
53:32Yeah
53:32So these leaf-shaped arrowheads
53:33this one in particular
53:34I just think
53:35it's just incredible
53:36It's so fine
53:37So fine
53:39So thin
53:40and completely symmetrical
53:43It's kind of shocking
53:44to look at things like this
53:45and realise that
53:46they were such violent items
53:48There's a tension, isn't there
53:50between admiring the beauty of it
53:52and then realising actually
53:53that that is designed
53:55to pierce flesh
53:56Yeah
53:56and kill something
53:57Yes
53:58Yeah
53:58Yeah
53:59These are a little
54:00Iron Age coin hoard
54:01These are so cool as well
54:03There's like
54:03the detail on these
54:04is exquisite
54:05Oh, wow
54:06Yeah
54:07Yeah
54:07Don't you love it?
54:08Isn't it lovely?
54:09A little horse
54:11So I can see
54:12his front leg's there
54:12and his back leg's there
54:14and then there are
54:15some other little details on it
54:17So when does that date to?
54:19I think it's about
54:2020 BC to 50 AD
54:22sort of that real
54:23transitionary period
54:24as the Romans are
54:25coming over to Britain
54:27These finds
54:28beautifully illustrate
54:29how culture changes
54:31over the centuries
54:32Iron Age coins
54:34give way to Roman brooches
54:36and as the Roman Empire
54:38fades from memory
54:39we find Anglo-Saxon
54:41weapon burials
54:43and then there are
54:45exquisite medieval finds
54:49This is so cool
54:50I have to show you this
54:51So
54:51this looks quite sombre
54:52to look at it
54:53looks very dark
54:54Yeah
54:55It's a pilgrim's badge
54:57or it would have been
54:58a necklace
54:59and if you now
55:00pick that up
55:00and hold it up
55:01to the light
55:03Oh, wow
55:04OK, so it is glass
55:06isn't it?
55:07It's glass, yep
55:07and this is amazing
55:08so we do have
55:10the same iconography
55:12exactly the same
55:13but only from
55:14Eastern Europe
55:15and Russia
55:15Really?
55:17And there's
55:17we think at the moment
55:18only about one or two of these
55:20in Western Europe
55:21including this one
55:22In the whole of Western Europe?
55:23Not just Britain?
55:24So this is
55:25I mean this is really special
55:26then this find
55:27Yeah
55:28Almost unique
55:29I mean I presume
55:30it's not made locally
55:31I presume it's come
55:32from elsewhere
55:33We think imported from Venice
55:34I think it's Venetian glass
55:35Yeah, yeah
55:36And presumably
55:37very sadly for them
55:38they've just dropped it
55:39They must have been annoyed
55:40wasn't they?
55:41Keeping it as a talisman
55:41It's a beautiful object
55:42if it was gifted to them
55:43we can have all kinds
55:44of imaginative interpretations
55:46That's a really special thing
55:47Yeah
55:48Wow
55:49What's this thing Rosanna?
55:50Oh this is a lead seal matrix
55:52so it would have been
55:53used for impressing
55:53into wax
55:54for sealing letters
55:56and things like that
55:57Wow
55:57It's got a flutterly
55:58in the middle
55:59It's got writing
56:00right on the outside
56:00Yeah and this is very cool
56:02so it says
56:02the seal of Matilda
56:04daughter of Godwin
56:06I can see the Matilda
56:07there I think
56:08Yeah
56:08Yeah
56:09In reverse
56:09Yeah
56:10And what's awesome about it
56:11is obviously we get
56:12a lot of information
56:12about men
56:13Yeah
56:14In the record
56:14Yeah
56:15But Matilda was obviously
56:16quite an important woman
56:18important enough
56:18to have her own seal
56:19so presumably
56:20she's writing documents
56:22and sealing them
56:24She'd be elite
56:25Yeah
56:25Well if she can
56:26write letters
56:26and has a seal
56:28in the 13th century
56:28Yeah
56:29She must have been
56:30pretty elite
56:31So we're coming closer
56:33to the modern days
56:34and then we're
56:35right up to 20th century
56:37Yeah
56:37So this is
56:38World War II evidence
56:39This is a bottle of beer
56:40still with the beer in
56:41And that's actually the beer
56:42still in it
56:43Yes
56:43Yeah I don't think
56:44I'd like to try that
56:4585 year old brew
56:46I think that can stay in there
56:48Is that a compass?
56:50Yeah this is quite beautiful
56:51That's lovely
56:52Can I pick it up?
56:53Yes absolutely
56:53It's not too fragile
56:54And it still opens and closes
56:55Oh
56:56I think it was a
56:57World War I issue
56:58Okay
56:59And that someone has then
57:01either reused it
57:01or been gifted it
57:02Yeah yeah
57:03For World War II
57:04because we found it
57:04in a World War II context
57:05Yeah
57:06And it does say
57:07USA Knight
57:08So it's American?
57:10It's American
57:10Yeah
57:11That's a beautiful object
57:15Lovely
57:15So we've got
57:16Wow
57:17What have we done?
57:1840,000 years of history
57:20on the table
57:22And all human life is here
57:24Yeah
57:25You know
57:25From
57:26Some conflict
57:27And to just domestic issues
57:29To eating
57:31To how you want to design yourself
57:34And how you want to look
57:35Self-care
57:37Yeah
57:37Death
57:38It's all there
57:40All uncovered
57:42At Syswell
57:56Next time on Digging for Britain
57:58Archaeologists in the Cotswolds
58:01Unearth a unique find
58:03We could see this
58:05Carved bone object
58:06I've never seen anything like it before
58:08A dig in Oxford
58:10Teaches us a lesson
58:11About students of the past
58:13We actually have a pier
58:15And we're calling it
58:15Smoker's Corner
58:16Where you would just chuck
58:17Your clay tobacco pipes
58:18And in Kent
58:19That is a plated gold discroach
58:23Archaeologists uncover
58:24Spectacular Anglo-Saxon burials
58:26It's a child with weapons
58:28Which is extraordinary
58:29Come and search for you
58:32Search and looking for us
58:36I dig for those
58:39I dig for those
58:40Whose stories live
58:42In very past
58:44Futures one
58:45And dig for us
58:48As we have done
58:50To lay the dead out
58:52In the sun
58:54To lay us dead out
58:57In the sun
58:58You can ask or
59:00Which is extraordinary
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