ARCHAEOLOGICAL investigations ahead of the construction of a new road in Somerset are revealing details of the changing landscape and the lives of local inhabitants over more than 7,000 years.
Wessex Archaeology has been working closely with contractors Galliford Try as part of National Highways’ A303 Sparkford to Ilchester upgrade, a scheme that will improve a three-mile section to a high-quality dual carriageway to make the road safer and more reliable.
And as the route takes shape, the archaeological team have been working hard to chart the history around the old route and the communities who have lived and worked alongside it. Among the finds so far, the team has found:
• Worked bone combs, traditionally associated with textile working, although it is unclear precisely how they were used
• Scallop shell with a 6mm hole drilled through, suggesting it was hung as a decoration
• Copper alloy brooch, decorated with enamel-filled lozenges, dating back to between AD 60–150
• Worked bone point which could have been used as a pin, skewer, weaving shuttle or pin beater for textile manufacture
• Mesolithic chert and flint tools
• Neolithic flint knives and charred plant remains from Neolithic pits
• Iron Age and Romano-British storage pits
Ruth Panes, project manager at Wessex Archaeology, comments: “The archaeological remains our team discovers as part of this scheme are helping us to understand more about the people that have lived, traded with, and travelled through this special part of Somerset.
“Alongside our recording of archaeological features - from prehistoric pits to field systems - we have found a wonderful collection of artefacts.
"To hold a flint tool, a worked bone comb or a copper alloy brooch that has not been touched for thousands of years is exciting - it’s these personal objects that really bring our work to life.
“As our work progresses, we look forward to being able to understand and share more about how people have interacted with this landscape.”
Elliot Hayes, Senior Project Manager for the National Highways scheme, said: “We, along with our contractors, have been working closely with Wessex Archaeology throughout the life of the scheme.
“Somerset has a rich cultural heritage and the team have brought their expertise to bear in adding to that history. In keeping with National Highways’ approach to protecting the country’s cultural heritage, we want to ensure that archaeological remains are preserved and recorded.
“We are absolutely committed to conserving and, where possible, enhancing the historic environment around a number of schemes across the country.”
Chris Hill, project director for Galliford Try, added: “It’s been really important for us, as the main contractor on the scheme, to work with Wessex to do all we can to help protect and preserve the local heritage.
“It’s been an exciting process to see what the team at Wessex has uncovered and it’s great to be able to share these finds with the public.”
All finds are being recorded and evaluated, and the more significant discoveries will be housed in a permanent archive.
In delivering the A303 Sparkford to Ilchester scheme, National Highways is aiming to
• Improve the capacity of the road to reduce delays and queues that occur during peak hours and at key times of the year i.e. the height of summer.
• Support economic growth, facilitating growth in jobs and housing by providing a free-flowing and reliable connection between the South East and the South West
• Make the road safer, by providing additional capacity and reducing driver stress. We’ll make routes safer for pedestrians, cyclists, horse riders in the area
• Protect the environment and look for opportunities to improve it, minimising any unnecessary impact of the scheme on the surrounding natural and historic environment and landscape
• Work with local communities to reduce the impact of the road on a sense of community severance, and look for ways to improve local peoples’ quality of life
• Make journey times more reliable and resilient, by providing more capacity it will become easier to manage traffic when incidents occur
The £140 million upgrade is scheduled to be open to traffic in 2024 and further information on the scheme is available on the website.
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