Vespasian's Camp - Prehistory of The Site

Prehistory of The Site

The hill on which Vespasian's Camp stands was used during the Neolithic era, as indicated by the Neolithic pits found near the centre. Excavations suggest that the hill may have been part of the Stonehenge ritual landscape during this period. The first building of the hillforts banks is believed to have occurred during the late Bronze Age (between 1100BC-800BC) with some later building in the early Iron Age (700BC-350BC). There appears to be an entrance on the northern and southern sides. Unlike most regular hillforts of the time, Vespasian's Camp has a somewhat unusual shape, appearing from above as an arrowhead. The southern banks are constructed with angled corners (possibly to take the shape of the hill alongside the Avon into account), which is not a common feature in most round hillforts in the south.

Excavations have revealed a metre thick layer of domestic waste that suggests the hill was heavily occupied after the banks were constructed. The absence of significant middle Iron Age finds suggests that the population on the hill had declined by then.

It had been assumed that most of the archaeology had been lost during the 18th century landscaping by a Marquess of Queensberry but documentary research showed that the hillfort had escaped most of the landscaping and excavations were begun in 2005. These focused on an area near Vespasian's Camp known as Blick Mead. The first finds discovered tools ranging as far back as the mesolithic. It also revealed that what had been thought to be a water feature was an ancient spring which might have been part of a seasonal lake.

Further work in 2010 uncovered a 12cm layer of mesolithic material including 10,000 pieces of struck flint and over 300 pieces of animal bone, a find described by Professor Tim Darvill as "the most important discovery at Stonehenge in many years." The struck flint tools were discovered in pristine condition, sharp enough to cut the fingers of some of the excavators, and it is believe that the layer may extend a few hundred metres more. One tool was made out of worked slate, a material not found in the local area. A possible source could be a slate glacial erratic, though there are none known to exist in the vicinity, or the slate could have been carried from the nearest ready source which is in North Wales. If this is the source it shows that thousands of years before Stonehenge this may have been a "special place to gather".

Evidence suggests that the spring area was used for huge feasts including the consumption of aurochs and as a centre for tool making. In addition an unusual form of Mesolithic domestic site was found, a semi-permanent site for families called a 'homebase'. Dates for the site show that is was used between 6250 and 4700 BC making it the oldest residential site in this area.