Black Dike is the diminutive counterpart to the great Tor Dike, rising from its western arm and climbing to the watershed between Great and Little Whernside. Beginning at roughly SD 988 756—where Tor Dike cleaves the limestone scarp—the Black Dike pursues a steep, sinuous course uphill for nearly 0.6 km, finally spilling onto the ridge crest at about 675 m above sea level
Category: Iron Age
Tor Dyke
Tor Dyke appears to have been attributed to Venutius which dates it of the period AD 52 – 70. The presence of a legionary size marching camp a few miles to the southwest at Malham certainly indicates an active role in the Roman advance of AD 70. However, given the lack of published research so far a clear picture has yet to emerge.
Jun 27
Prehistoric mounds, cairns and boundary earthworks in Coverdale
- Filed under Archaeology, Barrow, Boundary Marker, Brigantia, Brigantia England, Bronze Age, Burial Mound, Dark Ages, Dark Ages Brigantia, Early Christian, Early Medieval, Guide, Iron Age, Landscape Archaeology, Landscape feature, Motte and Bailey, Mound, New Sites, Roman, Terraces, Visible Remains
A gazetteer of probable prehistoric mounds, cairns and boundary earthworks in Coverdale. It is not complete and is still being researched.
Castle Dykes Henge, Thoralby – North Yorkshire
- Filed under Archaeology, Brigantia, Brigantia England, Britain, Class I, Earthworks, Henge, Iron Age, Landscape feature, New Sites, Ritual Landscape
Castle dykes it is a small class one henge, 90m across, perched on the high ground up in the North Yorkshire dales. The bank survives up to 1.5 m high in places, and the ditch up to 3 m deep. Early 20th-century reports (1908) noted its intact form, and recent LiDAR-based surveys have confirmed its classic henge profile with minimal later disturbance.
Jun 10
Guide: Barrows
- Filed under Archaeobotanical, Barrow, Bell Barrow, Bowl Barrow, Bronze Age, Dark Ages, Disc Barrow, Europe, Guide, Iron Age, Landscape Archaeology, Landscape feature, Long Barrow, Neolithic, Ring Barrow, Ritual Landscape, Roman, Round Barrow, Square Barrow, Steppe Kurgan
A barrow is a mound of earth and/or stones raised over a grave or group of graves. Used from the Neolithic through to the Iron Age (roughly 4000 BCE to 500 CE), barrows were often constructed to honour elite individuals, such as tribal leaders, warriors, or chieftains. They are frequently found singly or in cemeteries known as barrow fields.
- AngloViking, Arras Culture, barrow, Barrow Timeline, Bell Barrow, Bowl Barrow, britain, Bronze Age, Burial Mound, Disc Barrow, Eastern Europe, Hallstatt, Iberian Peninsular, ireland, Iron Age, la tene, Long Barrow, Neolithc, Nordic Bronze Age, Ring Barrow, Roman, Round Barrow, ScandinaviaUkraineCentral Europe, Square Barrow, Steppe Kurgan, timeline
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Jun 05
Guide: Classification of Henge Monuments
- Filed under Archaeology, Bronze Age, Earthworks, Henge, Iron Age, Landscape feature, Neolithic, New Sites
Archaeologists use the word “henge” for later-Neolithic and earliest Bronze-Age earthen rings whose ditch lies inside the bank, creating a deliberately bounded interior. The term itself was coined in 1932 by Kendrick; it was refined in the 1950s by Richard Atkinson, whose system still frames most discussion.
Drumanagh Promontory Fort – First Ever Intact Roman Pot Found in Ireland
- Filed under Agricola, Amphora, Bone Comb, Defensive Structures, Fort, Gaming Pieces, Hill Fort, Ireland, Iron Age, Late Iron Age, Leaders, News, Promontory fort, Roman pottery
RTE Ireland has reported that more recently they have made yet another remarkable discovery—an intact Roman pot. the first one to be uncovered on Irish soil, and providing more tantalising clues about ancient Roman-Irish interactions.
Although the Roman Empire they never reached Ireland (except, seemingly, in myth). That does not mean, that Roman influence and goods did enter Ireland, and it means that Drumanagh continues to headline as one of Irelands most tantalising archaeological sites for that same reason – exactly what were the Romans doing in Ireland?
Knockfarrel Fort
- Filed under Hill Fort, Iron Age, Vitrified Fort
This had substantial ramparts made of stones with a timber frame, enclosing a large area and making good use of the natural defences of the hill-top.
Barry Hill Fort
- Filed under Fort, Hill Fort, Iron Age, Vitrified Fort
Barry Hill is a textbook “big fort waiting for a small trench”: its spectacular vitrified rampart, enigmatic outer works and Arthurian folklore offer equal attraction to scientists and story-lovers—yet almost everything we know comes from surface survey. A single, well-designed excavation season could pivot the site from picturesque curiosity to a securely dated anchor point in the defensive story of eastern Scotland.
Dunagoil Hillfort, (Isle of Bute, Argyll & Bute)
- Filed under Archaeology, Bronze Age, Dark Ages, Defensive Structures, Early Medieval, Hill Fort, Iron Age, New Sites, Vitrified Fort
Dunagoil crowns a 30 m-high columnar-basalt promontory on the south-west coast of Bute, overlooking the Sound of Bute and the Cumbraes. Cliffs on the north and west form natural ramparts; only the gentle ESE saddle gives easy access.
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Announcing: The Brigantian News!
- Roman Road to the West uncovered under Manchester Street 16 July 2025
- What might Stonehenge Mean? Dartmoor and Carnac add to the Picture 3 July 2025
- Megalithic Stone Monuments in France May Be Europe’s Oldest 1 July 2025
- Drumanagh Promontory Fort – First Ever Intact Roman Pot Found in Ireland 5 June 2025
Portable Antiquities News
A copper alloy Roman radiate or nummus of an unclear ruler dating to AD260-402. Unclear reverse type. Unclear mint. [...]
An incomplete copper alloy object of uncertain function but of probable late Iron Age to Roman date (c.50 BC-AD 410)The object is comprised of an incomplete, hollow, globular head. The sides are worn and broken [...]
An Iron Age silver half unit of the Southern region, possibly a local issue attributable to the Belgae. Obverse: three armed spiral with a cogwheel centre and a crescent and annulets in each segment. Reverse: [...]
A complete silver Spanish Half Ryal of Ferdinand and Isabella dating to the period AD 1469-1504. Obverse depicts the 'Yoke of Aragon' the symbol of Ferdinand, the reverse depicts Arrows of Castile, the symbol of [...]
A fragment of a stone Architectural Fragment of probable Post-Medieval date (AD 1600-1750). The object is sub-rectangular in plan and shaped in section. All outer edges are broken. The outer surface is decorated with intersecting [...]
A complete copper alloy sestertius of Faustina the Elder (Faustina I) dating to the period AD 138-161 (Reece period 7). Unclear reverse type depicting a standing figure, draped, standing left. Mint of Rome.Diameter: 29.66mm, Weight: 17.03g [...]
An incomplete copy alloy Nummus of the House of Constantine dating to the period AD 330-337. Reece period 17. GLORIA EXERCITVS reverse depicting two soldiers and two standards. Unclear mint.Diameter: 14.53mm, Weight: 0.70gThe coin is missing the majority of its [...]
A complete silver Sixpence of Elizabeth I (AD 1558-1603). Third coinage. Long cross fourchée reverse over squared shield with date above. Tun initial mark. London mint. AD 1592.Diameter: 26.87mm, Thickness: 0.78mm, Weight: 2.87gNorth Vol II, P 137, No 2015 [...]
An incomplete copper alloy Crotal bell of a single cast form of Post-Medieval date (AD 1550-1750). The object comprises two hemispheres divided by a slightly raised horizontal circumferential rib. There are two sound holes one on [...]
An incomplete Roman copper-alloy toilet implement, likely a nail cleaner or ear scoop, dating to circa AD 43–200. The object is slender and rod-like, with a broadly circular-sectioned shank. One terminal terminates in an old [...]
A complete Early Medieval (Late Saxon to early Viking (Anglo-Scandinavian)) copper-alloy strap end dating to circa the late 850-1100 AD. The object consists of a plain, undecorated triangular plate which flares outwards towards a bifurcated [...]
Very nearly complete Roman copper-alloy slide key. It has a handle consisting of an a solid rectangular-cross-sectioned trapezoidal body with an oval suspension loop of approximately equal or slightly larger size at the wide end. [...]
A Post Medieval silver penny of Elizabeth I (AD 1558-1603), third coinage, crescent initial mark dating to AD 1587-1589 (N 2017). Tower of London mint. [...]
A Roman copper-alloy contemporary copy of a nummus of the House of Constantine (AD 306-364) dating to circa AD 354-361 (Reece Period 18). Copying FEL TEMP REPARATIO reverse type depicting soldier spearing fallen horseman. Unclear [...]
A Roman copper-alloy radiate or nummus of an uncertain ruler dating to circa AD 260-402. Uncertain reverse type. Unclear mint. [...]
A Roman copper-alloy nummus of the House of Constantine (AD 306-364) dating to circa AD 354-361 (Reece Period 18). FEL TEMP REPARATIO reverse type depicting soldier spearing fallen horseman. Unclear mint. [...]
A Post Medieval copper-alloy Nuremberg jetton of Hans Krauwinkel II dating to circa AD 1590-1610. Obverse with central rose surrounded by six crowns. Legend: HANS KRAVWINKEL IN NVR. Reverse with rose and imperial orb and legend GOTT·ALLEIN·DIE·EHRE.VND. [...]
A Medieval cast copper alloy pin from an annular buckle dating c. 1250-1450.The pin has a sub-rectangular cross-section with rounded edges. There is a raised rectangular grip on the upper surface with five transverse ribs [...]
A complete silver Five Pence Bank Token of George III (AD 1760-1820). The reverse reads: BANK TOKEN FIVE PENCE IRISH 1805. Diameter: 19.29mm, Thickness: 0.90mm, Weight: 1.89gThe coin has a circular perforation at 12 O’clock, [...]
An incomplete silver Half Groat of Charles I (AD 1625-1649). Group D. Ovate garnished shield reverse. Crown initial mark. Minted London under Charles I. AD 1635-1636. Diameter: 16.36mm, Thickness: 0.73mm, Weight: 0.87gNorth Vol II, P 162, No [...]
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