Huge UK archaeology breakthrough as scientists solve 3,000-year-old mystery
Fascinating finds have been unearthed near a UK reservoir that shed new light on the past.
Archaeologists are celebrating an incredible 3,000-year-old discovery made during construction of a new 12-mile water pipe being built near a UK reservoir.
Excavations by the team from Oxford Archaeology have unearthed a fascinating array of coins and evidence of settlements near Abbington Reservoir, near Colchester, Essex.
Roman currency has been discovered, as well as earlier examples of Iron and Bronze Age pottery giving clues to an inhabited area previously not on any maps.
The findings could open a new chapter in the history of Britain, with scientists saying they have also found traces of ancient farms with large rectangular enclosures to grow crops.
Tim Haines, senior archaeologist from engineering and design consultancy firm Stantec, told the BBC the pottery found at the site could be linked to similar discoveries in France.
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He said: “We forget how much trade there was across the North Sea.
“On the Essex coast, you’ve got all of these little estuaries so people would be trading from the continent up and down them - it’s a very dynamic, very international landscape.”
One of the coins found by the team of archaeologists is believed to show the face of Roman Emperor Valentinian I, who ruled from 364 to 375AD.
Romans ruled Britain from around 43AD until 410AD, before the empire collapsed and soldiers left the country heralding the start of the Dark Ages.
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Essex and Suffolk Water is building the pipeline from Layer de la Haye to Langford, near Maldon, in Essex.
Archaeologists have been researching the route of the construction work for more than two years and began their first digs in 2024.
Nearby Colchester was the first major Roman city in Britain when it was then known as Camulodunum and served as the capital for a number of years.
The settlement held a garrision of Roman soldiers and the military connection continues to this day with the British Army's 16th Air Assault Brigade being stationed in the city.
