The Big Dig 2003!
The Iron Age hillfort of Castle Hill overlooks the river Thames at Little Wittenham in Oxfordshire, just across the river from Dorchester-on-Thames. It is owned and managed by the Northmoor Trust.
The site has never been excavated, though fieldwalking has revealed Iron Age, Roman and Saxon activity in the interior and Late Roman burials have been found around the outside. A geophysical survey by English Heritage in 2002 revealed an inner buried ditch circuit, probably from an earlier Bronze Age enclosure and other enigmatic features.
Forming the first part of investigations into the site, Oxford Archaeology have excavated seven trenches across the ditch, rampart and the interior of the hillfort with the assistance of students and other volunteers. This is was not a formal training excavation but offered a wide variety of experience of archaeological fieldwork and finds to the volunteers working with one of the foremost professional organisations in the country. The director is Tim Allen.
To find out about The Big Dig! read the event diary.
