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An excavation, co-ordinated by Dartmoor National Park Authority, has discovered a nationally important collection of Early Bronze Age remains in a burial site situated in Dartmoor National Park. The discovery could prove to be one of the most important archaeological finds of the last 100 years nationally.
The excavation has revealed that cremated human bone and burnt textile was placed within an animal hide or fur on top of a very thin leather and textile object, itself placed above a mat of plant material. At one end of the fur/ hide was a delicate woven bag or basket with fine stitching still visible. The contents inside included beautifully preserved shale disc beads, amber spherical beads (see image bottom right) and a circular textile band. A further layer of matted plant material covered these objects.
The burial cist was excavated in August 2011 and was located on Whitehorse Hill, northern Dartmoor, on land owned by the Duchy of Cornwall. The work was carried out by archaeologists from the Historic Environment Projects Team, Cornwall Council, led by Andrew Jones, with assistance from English Heritage (EH) and Plymouth University specialists.
The project was jointly funded by the Dartmoor National Park Authority (DNPA) and English Heritage, with contributions from a number of other local funders.
Cists are stone built chests which are used for the burial of cremations or inhumations, and are found in the south west of England and elsewhere but are rarely found with their original contents. Some 200 cists are known on Dartmoor. They may be sunk into the ground or positioned in barrows or mounds. On Dartmoor the Whitehorse Hill cist is the only known example set within a peat mound.
The cist was first discovered over 10 years ago when what appeared to be its end stone fell out of the peat mound which had been concealing it. Since that time the peat has slowly eroded away from the sides and the top of the peat mound. After several attempts to protect the cist, a Scheduled Monument, the decision was taken by the DNPA and EH to excavate it in order to recover any surviving archaeological and environmental information before the site and its context were lost. This was the first excavation of a Dartmoor cist for nearly one hundred years.
Located within peat at 600m altitude on one of Dartmoor’s highest tors, the cist offered high potential for good preservation of any remaining contents and an opportunity to better understand archaeological preservation within upland peat at a time of change in upland management.
The cist’s isolated location and elevated position well away from other known archaeology was unusual. This also caused some logistical problems in getting the necessary equipment and archaeologists up to the site. The Ministry of Defence was of great help providing transport and the use of its Observation Post on Hangingstone Hill as an overnight store.
During the late afternoon, three days into the excavation, the stones of the cist were dismantled and the large cover stone (measuring 0.8 x 0.6m) removed. This revealed a burial deposit lying in situ on the base stone of the cist. Visible remains included bone fragments, a shale bead and what appeared to be hair or fur. Two sharpened wooden stakes were also discovered outside the cist, one lying horizontally against one of the side walls and the other still vertically placed into the peat against one of the end stones.
It was immediately evident that micro-excavation in controlled conditions was essential as, once exposed, the organic remains were very vulnerable.
The entire deposit, including the granite base stone was wrapped and transported to the Wiltshire Conservation Service laboratory where ‘micro excavation’ has taken place, revealing a wealth of information that does not normally survive in most burials on drier soils.
Jane Marchand, Senior Archaeologist for Dartmoor National Park Authority and Whitehorse Hill Project Manager, said:
'This is a most unusual and fascinating glimpse into what an early Bronze Age grave goods assemblage on Dartmoor might have looked like when it was buried, including the personal possessions of people living on the Moor around 4,000 years ago.'
A programme of analysis will now follow to examine the peat surrounding the cist. Studies of pollen, other plant remains and testate amoebae (microscopic single cell organisms) supported by radio carbon dating will provide evidence of vegetation and climate at the time of the burial.
There is also much specialist analysis to be carried out on the different items within the cist burial before conservation work can begin stabilising the finds under controlled conditions. This will allow further examination and study of the objects to find out how they were made and the materials used around 4000 years ago.
It is planned to rebuild the cist and reinstate it in the spot where it was found.
Source, with more photos of the dig and the finds here
http://www.dartmoor-npa.gov.uk/aboutus/news/au-geninterestnews/prehistburial
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