Archaeology

Archaeological artefacts are often encountered during mineral extraction and have positive impacts through extending our knowledge of the past. We work in accordance with the CBI protocol on archaeology and commission archaeological experts to undertake a survey before quarrying begins. A watching brief is often adopted during extraction.

Several key finds have been made in the last few years which have contributed to international knowledge. One of the most northerly examples of a mammoth tusk was found within marine-dredged aggregates in February 2006, contributing to knowledge of the limits of the ice front during the last ice age. Ongoing work has also been undertaken for the last 18 years at Cassington quarry near Oxford, where finds have included the remains of a bronze age circular house, segments of decorated pottery and flint and the remains of a man from 4,000 years ago.

Extensions to our clay quarry at Bradley Fen near Peterborough revealed dug out canoes, kilns, houses and bronze age skeletons. A collection of bronze age swords and spears was of particular significance, because archaeologists were able to relate the objects to the adjacent bronze age fields and houses.

At the adjacent Must Farm extension, exploratory investigations have revealed extraordinary remains of international importance, including metalwork, glass beads and whole pottery vessels. Most significant are the textiles of late bronze age which have been preserved due to the waterlogged conditions. Given the fragile nature of the remains, we have sealed the site with clay bunds and undertake regular water and oxygen monitoring to ensure their ongoing preservation.

The oldest shoe ever found in the UK - dating from the Iron Age (700 BC - AD 43) - was uncovered in 2005 at Hanson's Whiteball sand and gravel quarry, near Wellington in Somerset.

A team from Exeter Archaeology unearthed the 2,000-year-old shoe at Town Farm, Burlescombe. It was reasonably well preserved with stitch and lace holes still visible in the leather and measures approximately 30cm, equivalent to a modern-day UK size nine or 10.

The shoe was the third significant find at Whiteball in recent years. In 1999, excavations in an earlier phase of the quarry exposed a Saxon iron-smelting site. And in 2004 a Bronze Age burnt mound consisting of two mounds of burnt stone and two water-filled troughs, was unearthed.

These discoveries highlight the important part that quarrying companies have to play in protecting and preserving our national heritage. Other significant discoveries made at Hanson quarries include:

  • A log boat from the middle Bronze Age still carrying a cargo of quarried stone discovered at Shardlow quarry near Derby.
  • Two historic burial sites dating back 4,000 years at West Knighton quarry near Dorchester.
  • Prehistoric remains at Dix quarry, Stanton Harcourt, near Oxford, which resulted in the discovery of a previously unknown warm inter-glacial period.