Worlebury Camp
Encyclopedia
Worlebury Camp is the name of the place where an Iron Age
hill fort
once stood atop Worlebury Hill
, which is north of the town of Weston-super-Mare
in Somerset
, England. This fort was designed for defence, as is evidenced the number of walls and ditches around the site. Archaeologists have found several large triangular platforms around the sides of the fort, lower down on the hillside. They have found nearly one hundred storage pits of various sizes cut into the bedrock
, and many of these had human remains, coins, and other artefacts in them. However, in more recent times, the fort has suffered damage and been threatened with complete destruction on multiple occasions. This location has been designated an Scheduled Ancient Monument
, and it falls within the Weston Woods Local Nature Reserve
which was declared to Natural England
by North Somerset
Council in 2005.
people initially built Worlebury Camp. The Belgae
people subsequently overthrew the initial inhabitants and occupied the camp for a time, but they were finally destroyed at the hands of the Romans
.
Worlebury Camp has been explored at various times over a period of 150 years. From 1851 to 1852, Charles Dymond
, Edwin Martin Atkins, and Francis Warre excavated and surveyed Worlebury Camp. Dymond returned in 1880 to continue the excavation, which lasted until 1881. Another century passed before the Woodspring Museum from Weston-super-Mare excavated more of Worlebury camp in 1987 to 1988. Finally, in 1998, the Avon Extensive Urban Study team performed the latest (as of 2008) assessment of the site.
. The reason for their emergence in Britain, and their purpose, has been a subject of debate. It has been argued that they could have been military sites constructed in response to invasion from continental Europe, sites built by invaders, or a military reaction to social tensions caused by an increasing population and consequent pressure on agriculture. The dominant view since the 1960s has been that the increasing use of iron led to social changes in Britain. Deposits of iron ore were located in different places to the tin and copper ore necessary to make bronze, and as a result trading patterns shifted and the old elites lost their economic and social status. Power passed into the hands of a new group of people. Archaeologist Barry Cunliffe
believes that population increase still played a role and has stated "[the forts] provided defensive possibilities for the community at those times when the stress [of an increasing population] burst out into open warfare. But I wouldn't see them as having been built because there was a state of war. They would be functional as defensive strongholds when there were tensions and undoubtedly some of them were attacked and destroyed, but this was not the only, or even the most significant, factor in their construction".
, 109 metres (358 ft) above sea level. It is in the present-day North Somerset
, above the seaside resort of Weston-super-Mare
and close to the village of Worle
.
Its occupants would have had a view of the countryside as well as any potential invaders. They would have been able to see out over to Sugar Loaf Mountain, the Black Mountains
, the Mendip Hills
, Dunkery Beacon
, Sand Point
, and Wales
. This view is no longer as unobstructed as it once was because there are so many trees spread over the hill.
platforms or archers' stations. Several sling stones have been found around them, offering some credence to the theory that slingers stood upon these platforms. Dymond mentions the stones in his book:
between Weston Bay
and Sand Bay
. These would have rendered the fort nearly invulnerable to attack from those directions. Nevertheless, the fort still has one wall on its north side and one on its west side, both very near the edge of the cliffs. On the south side, a single rampart
and a ditch guarded the fort. The level east side was protected by two stone ramparts and five ditches. Parts of these ramparts were over 35 feet (10.7 m) high measuring from the bottom of the ditch as of 1875.
The walls themselves are around 1 metres (3.3 ft) thick. However, because they are dry-laid stone, the removal of a few stones would be sufficient to bring the entire wall collapsing down. To prevent access to the walls themselves, the inhabitants of the fort raised large breastworks
around the base of the walls by piling up rock rubble against the bases. These rubble barriers are over 1.22 metres (4 ft) high, and in places they are over 1.22 metres (4 ft) thick. Attackers would have had to clear away the rubble before being able to attack the wall, and all the while they would be under direct fire from defenders on the top of the wall.
, which is only around 60 centimetres (2 ft) beneath the surface of the soil in most places. Eighteen of the pits are in what Dymond calls the "keep", one is in the transverse fosse (a fosse is a ditch usually dug for protection), and seventy-four of the pits are outside the "keep" but still enclosed within the exterior walls. The average size of the pits is around 2 metres (6.6 ft) long by 2 metres wide and 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) deep. The largest pit is roughly triangular, with sides measuring 3 metres (9.8 ft), 2.7 metres (8.9 ft), and 2.4 metres (7.9 ft) long. The smallest pit is 1 metres (3.3 ft) long by 0.7 metres (2.3 ft) wide. The inhabitants used them to store grain, as is evidenced by the kernels
of barley
and wheat
and the shards of pots that were found in the pits. Several of the pits contained the remnants of pea
s and the remains of burned woven baskets. In addition, researchers also found sling stones and spindle whorls
dated to the first or 2nd century BC in them.
Eighteen of these pits were found to contain the remains of human skeletons, which are now stored in the Weston-super-Mare Museum in Weston-super-Mare. Eighteen full skeletons were found, of which ten show evidence of a violent death (including sword cuts in the skulls). It is possible that the Romans or the Belgic
raiders attacked the fort and killed the inhabitants.
copper alloy penannular collar of special interest to archaeologists has been found at the campsite. It may indicate that this hilltop site was used even before the Iron Age, since related artefacts tend to be found with Bronze Age
items, and it was the first of its type found in Britain. In 2006, a related copper penannular brooch dating to the fifth or sixth century AD was found in a spring between Brecon Beacons
and the Black Mountains
in Wales. A gold penannular bracelet was found in the Perry River
.
Roman coins have been found at Worlebury Camp since the Romans had established a presence by the end of the 1st century AD. Many of the Roman coins bear the image of the Western Roman Emperor
Honorius
. This was inside the fort proper. Another coin was located by Trinity Path which leads towards the fort.
Other findings at the Worlebury campsite include animal remains, including the bones of pigs, oxen, horses, deer, goats, and even small birds. Limpet
shells have also been found near the bones. Archaeologists found iron objects, adding further credibility to the idea that this fort is from the Iron Age. These objects include a chisel or borer, several spearheads and javelin
heads, and an iron cone with charred wood inside and a rivet hole through the cone. Dymond assumes that this cone was once a plowshare
. Stone artefacts, mainly slingstones and scrapers, have been discovered at the site. Just less than 36 flint chips have been found, of which some may be arrowheads. One good-quality arrowhead has been found. In addition to these, Dymond recorded finding a lead lump about the size of a walnut that he decided was probably a sling bullet. Glastonbury type
bead-rim pottery
was also found at this site. A socketed bronze axe from the late Bronze Age, which was found at Worlebury Hill in 1883, is in the Ashmolean Museum
.
started operation in the southern side of Worlebury Hill in 1815 to mine for galena
, calamine
, and stone. The Bristol and Exeter Railway
arrived in Weston-super-Mare in 1841, making it profitable to expand the village into a town. In 1842, Weston-super-Mare became a town with the granting of the Improvement and Market Act of May 1842. This act also proposed developing houses right over the brow of the hill. This would have gone straight through Worlebury Camp; however, the actual expansion never reached the site. By 1853, some development had occurred according to the proposed expansion, but it had skirted the hillfort and continued to the east.
District of the Somerset Archaeological Society was taking steps to prevent such damage from happening again.
Some of the trees planted in the early 19th century had become very large, and their roots were growing into the archaeological structures. In 2005, the Forestry Commission
gave permission for North Somerset
Council to fell 300 trees to reduce the subsequent risks. A member of the North Somerset Council, Christopher Richards, said: "If we had a storm up here and these trees came down, then the entire hillfort could be destroyed."
This article incorporates material from Worlebury, an Ancient Stronghold in the County of Somerset (by Charles Dymond), a public domain source.
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
hill fort
Hill fort
A hill fort is a type of earthworks used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze and Iron Ages. Some were used in the post-Roman period...
once stood atop Worlebury Hill
Worlebury Hill
Worlebury Hill is the name given to an upland area lying between the flatlands of Weston-super-Mare and the Kewstoke area of North Somerset, England. Worlebury Hill's rises from sea level to its highest point of , and the western end of the hill forms a peninsula, jutting out into the Bristol...
, which is north of the town of Weston-super-Mare
Weston-super-Mare
Weston-super-Mare is a seaside resort, town and civil parish in the unitary authority of North Somerset, which is within the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. It is located on the Bristol Channel coast, south west of Bristol, spanning the coast between the bounding high ground of Worlebury...
in Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, England. This fort was designed for defence, as is evidenced the number of walls and ditches around the site. Archaeologists have found several large triangular platforms around the sides of the fort, lower down on the hillside. They have found nearly one hundred storage pits of various sizes cut into the bedrock
Bedrock
In stratigraphy, bedrock is the native consolidated rock underlying the surface of a terrestrial planet, usually the Earth. Above the bedrock is usually an area of broken and weathered unconsolidated rock in the basal subsoil...
, and many of these had human remains, coins, and other artefacts in them. However, in more recent times, the fort has suffered damage and been threatened with complete destruction on multiple occasions. This location has been designated an Scheduled Ancient Monument
Scheduled Ancient Monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a 'nationally important' archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorized change. The various pieces of legislation used for legally protecting heritage assets from damage and destruction are grouped under the term...
, and it falls within the Weston Woods Local Nature Reserve
Local Nature Reserve
Local nature reserve or LNR is a designation for nature reserves in the United Kingdom. The designation has its origin in the recommendations of the Wild Life Conservation Special Committee which established the framework for nature conservation in the United Kingdom and suggested a national suite...
which was declared to Natural England
Natural England
Natural England is the non-departmental public body of the UK government responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, freshwater and marine environments, geology and soils, are protected and improved...
by North Somerset
North Somerset
North Somerset is a unitary authority in England. Its area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset but it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the town hall in Weston-super-Mare....
Council in 2005.
History
In The Ancient Entrenchments and Camps of Gloucestershire, Edward J. Burrow mentions that probably either the Goidel or BrythonBrython
The Britons were the Celtic people culturally dominating Great Britain from the Iron Age through the Early Middle Ages. They spoke the Insular Celtic language known as British or Brythonic...
people initially built Worlebury Camp. The Belgae
Belgae
The Belgae were a group of tribes living in northern Gaul, on the west bank of the Rhine, in the 3rd century BC, and later also in Britain, and possibly even Ireland...
people subsequently overthrew the initial inhabitants and occupied the camp for a time, but they were finally destroyed at the hands of the Romans
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
.
Worlebury Camp has been explored at various times over a period of 150 years. From 1851 to 1852, Charles Dymond
Charles William Dymond
Charles William Dymond was born on August 4, 1832 and died in 1915, and his occupation was that of a physician. From 1851 to 1852, he explored Worlebury Camp. On July 11, 1860, Dymond married Mary Esther Wilson and had two children, Philip William Dymond and Helen Margaret Dymond...
, Edwin Martin Atkins, and Francis Warre excavated and surveyed Worlebury Camp. Dymond returned in 1880 to continue the excavation, which lasted until 1881. Another century passed before the Woodspring Museum from Weston-super-Mare excavated more of Worlebury camp in 1987 to 1988. Finally, in 1998, the Avon Extensive Urban Study team performed the latest (as of 2008) assessment of the site.
Background
Hill forts developed in the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age, roughly the start of the first millennium BC1st millennium BC
The 1st millennium BC encompasses the Iron Age and sees the rise of many successive empires, and spanned from 1000 BC to 1 BC.The Neo-Assyrian Empire, followed by the Achaemenids. In Greece, Classical Antiquity begins with the colonization of Magna Graecia and peaks with the rise of Hellenism. The...
. The reason for their emergence in Britain, and their purpose, has been a subject of debate. It has been argued that they could have been military sites constructed in response to invasion from continental Europe, sites built by invaders, or a military reaction to social tensions caused by an increasing population and consequent pressure on agriculture. The dominant view since the 1960s has been that the increasing use of iron led to social changes in Britain. Deposits of iron ore were located in different places to the tin and copper ore necessary to make bronze, and as a result trading patterns shifted and the old elites lost their economic and social status. Power passed into the hands of a new group of people. Archaeologist Barry Cunliffe
Barry Cunliffe
Sir Barrington Windsor Cunliffe, CBE, known professionally as Barry Cunliffe is a former Professor of European Archaeology at the University of Oxford, a position held from 1972 to 2007...
believes that population increase still played a role and has stated "[the forts] provided defensive possibilities for the community at those times when the stress [of an increasing population] burst out into open warfare. But I wouldn't see them as having been built because there was a state of war. They would be functional as defensive strongholds when there were tensions and undoubtedly some of them were attacked and destroyed, but this was not the only, or even the most significant, factor in their construction".
Location
The fort is located on the summit of Worlebury HillWorlebury Hill
Worlebury Hill is the name given to an upland area lying between the flatlands of Weston-super-Mare and the Kewstoke area of North Somerset, England. Worlebury Hill's rises from sea level to its highest point of , and the western end of the hill forms a peninsula, jutting out into the Bristol...
, 109 metres (358 ft) above sea level. It is in the present-day North Somerset
North Somerset
North Somerset is a unitary authority in England. Its area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset but it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the town hall in Weston-super-Mare....
, above the seaside resort of Weston-super-Mare
Weston-super-Mare
Weston-super-Mare is a seaside resort, town and civil parish in the unitary authority of North Somerset, which is within the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. It is located on the Bristol Channel coast, south west of Bristol, spanning the coast between the bounding high ground of Worlebury...
and close to the village of Worle
Worle
Worle is a village in North Somerset that is now totally absorbed by the seaside town of Weston-super-Mare. Despite this, Worle pre-dates Weston and was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086. In the book, it is said that Worle was owned by Walter of Douai, and consisted of and valued at 6.5...
.
Its occupants would have had a view of the countryside as well as any potential invaders. They would have been able to see out over to Sugar Loaf Mountain, the Black Mountains
Black Mountains, Wales
The Black Mountains are a group of hills spread across parts of Powys and Monmouthshire in southeast Wales, and extending across the national border into Herefordshire, England. They are the easternmost of the four ranges of hills that comprise the Brecon Beacons National Park, and are frequently...
, the Mendip Hills
Mendip Hills
The Mendip Hills is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. Running east to west between Weston-super-Mare and Frome, the hills overlook the Somerset Levels to the south and the Avon Valley to the north...
, Dunkery Beacon
Dunkery Beacon
Dunkery Beacon is the summit of Dunkery Hill, and the highest point on Exmoor and in Somerset, England. It is also the highest point in southern England outside Dartmoor....
, Sand Point
Sand Point, Somerset
Sand Point in Somerset is the peninsula stretching out from Middle Hope, which lies to the north of the village of Kewstoke, and the stretch of coastline called Sand Bay. It is owned by the National Trust and is a popular place for walking...
, and Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. This view is no longer as unobstructed as it once was because there are so many trees spread over the hill.
Triangular stone platforms
There are a number of triangular platforms on the slopes around the hill fort. The apexes of these triangles are flush with the hillside, with the base projecting in the downhill direction. However, the upper surface is approximately level. The front faces of these platforms are about 1.7 metres (5.6 ft) above the hillside, and they have ditches in front of them to improve their defense. In a letter to Warre, Atkins theorized that the structures were slingers'Sling (weapon)
A sling is a projectile weapon typically used to throw a blunt projectile such as a stone or lead "sling-bullet". It is also known as the shepherd's sling....
platforms or archers' stations. Several sling stones have been found around them, offering some credence to the theory that slingers stood upon these platforms. Dymond mentions the stones in his book:
Walls and ditches
Worlebury Hill is bordered on its north and west sides by steep cliffs dropping down into the Bristol ChannelBristol Channel
The Bristol Channel is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England. It extends from the lower estuary of the River Severn to the North Atlantic Ocean...
between Weston Bay
Weston Bay
Weston Bay is an inlet of the Bristol Channel in North Somerset, England.It lies between Brean Down, which is now owned by the National Trust, is rich in wildlife, history and archaeology, and has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest to the south, and Worlebury Hill to the north...
and Sand Bay
Sand Bay
Sand Bay is a strip of coast in North Somerset bordered to the south by Worlebury Hill and to the north by Middle Hope and Sand Point. It lies north of the seaside resort of Weston-super-Mare, and across the Bristol Channel from South Wales. It is adjacent to the village of Kewstoke.The north end...
. These would have rendered the fort nearly invulnerable to attack from those directions. Nevertheless, the fort still has one wall on its north side and one on its west side, both very near the edge of the cliffs. On the south side, a single rampart
Defensive wall
A defensive wall is a fortification used to protect a city or settlement from potential aggressors. In ancient to modern times, they were used to enclose settlements...
and a ditch guarded the fort. The level east side was protected by two stone ramparts and five ditches. Parts of these ramparts were over 35 feet (10.7 m) high measuring from the bottom of the ditch as of 1875.
The walls themselves are around 1 metres (3.3 ft) thick. However, because they are dry-laid stone, the removal of a few stones would be sufficient to bring the entire wall collapsing down. To prevent access to the walls themselves, the inhabitants of the fort raised large breastworks
Breastwork (fortification)
A breastwork is a fortification. The term is usually applied to temporary fortifications, often an earthwork thrown up to breast height to provide protection to defenders firing over it from a standing position...
around the base of the walls by piling up rock rubble against the bases. These rubble barriers are over 1.22 metres (4 ft) high, and in places they are over 1.22 metres (4 ft) thick. Attackers would have had to clear away the rubble before being able to attack the wall, and all the while they would be under direct fire from defenders on the top of the wall.
Storage pits
The area inside the outer wall has a series of hut circles and 93 storage pits cut directly into the bedrockBedrock
In stratigraphy, bedrock is the native consolidated rock underlying the surface of a terrestrial planet, usually the Earth. Above the bedrock is usually an area of broken and weathered unconsolidated rock in the basal subsoil...
, which is only around 60 centimetres (2 ft) beneath the surface of the soil in most places. Eighteen of the pits are in what Dymond calls the "keep", one is in the transverse fosse (a fosse is a ditch usually dug for protection), and seventy-four of the pits are outside the "keep" but still enclosed within the exterior walls. The average size of the pits is around 2 metres (6.6 ft) long by 2 metres wide and 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) deep. The largest pit is roughly triangular, with sides measuring 3 metres (9.8 ft), 2.7 metres (8.9 ft), and 2.4 metres (7.9 ft) long. The smallest pit is 1 metres (3.3 ft) long by 0.7 metres (2.3 ft) wide. The inhabitants used them to store grain, as is evidenced by the kernels
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
of barley
Barley
Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...
and wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
and the shards of pots that were found in the pits. Several of the pits contained the remnants of pea
Pea
A pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the pod fruit Pisum sativum. Each pod contains several peas. Peapods are botanically a fruit, since they contain seeds developed from the ovary of a flower. However, peas are considered to be a vegetable in cooking...
s and the remains of burned woven baskets. In addition, researchers also found sling stones and spindle whorls
Spindle (textiles)
A spindle is a wooden spike used for spinning wool, flax, hemp, cotton, and other fibres into thread. It is commonly weighted at either the bottom middle or top, most commonly by a circular or spherical object called a whorl, and may also have a hook, groove or notch, though spindles without...
dated to the first or 2nd century BC in them.
Eighteen of these pits were found to contain the remains of human skeletons, which are now stored in the Weston-super-Mare Museum in Weston-super-Mare. Eighteen full skeletons were found, of which ten show evidence of a violent death (including sword cuts in the skulls). It is possible that the Romans or the Belgic
Belgae
The Belgae were a group of tribes living in northern Gaul, on the west bank of the Rhine, in the 3rd century BC, and later also in Britain, and possibly even Ireland...
raiders attacked the fort and killed the inhabitants.
Artefacts
A castCasting
In metalworking, casting involves pouring liquid metal into a mold, which contains a hollow cavity of the desired shape, and then allowing it to cool and solidify. The solidified part is also known as a casting, which is ejected or broken out of the mold to complete the process...
copper alloy penannular collar of special interest to archaeologists has been found at the campsite. It may indicate that this hilltop site was used even before the Iron Age, since related artefacts tend to be found with Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
items, and it was the first of its type found in Britain. In 2006, a related copper penannular brooch dating to the fifth or sixth century AD was found in a spring between Brecon Beacons
Brecon Beacons
The Brecon Beacons is a mountain range in South Wales. In a narrow sense, the name refers to the range of popular peaks south of Brecon, including South Wales' highest mountain, Pen y Fan, and which together form the central section of the Brecon Beacons National Park...
and the Black Mountains
Black Mountains, Wales
The Black Mountains are a group of hills spread across parts of Powys and Monmouthshire in southeast Wales, and extending across the national border into Herefordshire, England. They are the easternmost of the four ranges of hills that comprise the Brecon Beacons National Park, and are frequently...
in Wales. A gold penannular bracelet was found in the Perry River
Perry River
Perry River is a waterway in Kitikmeot Region, Nunavut, Canada. It empties into Chester Bay on the southern Queen Maud Gulf.At one time, Stephen Angulalik, and later Red Pedersen, ran a Hudson's Bay Company outpost at Perry River....
.
Roman coins have been found at Worlebury Camp since the Romans had established a presence by the end of the 1st century AD. Many of the Roman coins bear the image of the Western Roman Emperor
Western Roman Empire
The Western Roman Empire was the western half of the Roman Empire after its division by Diocletian in 285; the other half of the Roman Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire, commonly referred to today as the Byzantine Empire....
Honorius
Honorius (emperor)
Honorius , was Western Roman Emperor from 395 to 423. He was the younger son of emperor Theodosius I and his first wife Aelia Flaccilla, and brother of the eastern emperor Arcadius....
. This was inside the fort proper. Another coin was located by Trinity Path which leads towards the fort.
Other findings at the Worlebury campsite include animal remains, including the bones of pigs, oxen, horses, deer, goats, and even small birds. Limpet
Limpet
Limpet is a common name for a number of different kinds of saltwater and freshwater snails ; it is applied to those snails that have a simple shell which is more or less conical in shape, and either is not spirally coiled, or appears not to be coiled in the adult snails.The name limpet is most...
shells have also been found near the bones. Archaeologists found iron objects, adding further credibility to the idea that this fort is from the Iron Age. These objects include a chisel or borer, several spearheads and javelin
Javelin
A Javelin is a light spear intended for throwing. It is commonly known from the modern athletic discipline, the Javelin throw.Javelin may also refer to:-Aviation:* ATG Javelin, an American-Israeli civil jet aircraft, under development...
heads, and an iron cone with charred wood inside and a rivet hole through the cone. Dymond assumes that this cone was once a plowshare
Plowshare
In agriculture, a plowshare is a component of a plow . It is the cutting or leading edge of a moldboard which closely follows the coulter when plowing....
. Stone artefacts, mainly slingstones and scrapers, have been discovered at the site. Just less than 36 flint chips have been found, of which some may be arrowheads. One good-quality arrowhead has been found. In addition to these, Dymond recorded finding a lead lump about the size of a walnut that he decided was probably a sling bullet. Glastonbury type
Glastonbury type pottery
Glastonbury type pottery is a form of Iron Age pottery derived from earlier Gaulish art of the middle La Tène period. It was made in southwestern England and takes its name from the town of Glastonbury in Somerset....
bead-rim pottery
Bead-rim pottery
Bead-rim pottery refers to the presence of a rounded molding on the lip of a jar, bowl, or dish. It must cover at least two-thirds of the circumference of the item to be considered bead-rim....
was also found at this site. A socketed bronze axe from the late Bronze Age, which was found at Worlebury Hill in 1883, is in the Ashmolean Museum
Ashmolean Museum
The Ashmolean Museum on Beaumont Street, Oxford, England, is the world's first university museum...
.
Damage to the site
19th century
Development of Weston-super-Mare since the 19th century has resulted in three episodes of potentially irreversible damage to the site. A quarryQuarry
A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. Quarries are generally used for extracting building materials, such as dimension stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel. They are often collocated with concrete and asphalt plants due to the requirement...
started operation in the southern side of Worlebury Hill in 1815 to mine for galena
Galena
Galena is the natural mineral form of lead sulfide. It is the most important lead ore mineral.Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It crystallizes in the cubic crystal system often showing octahedral forms...
, calamine
Calamine
Calamine is a mixture of zinc oxide with about 0.5% ferric oxide . It is the main ingredient in calamine lotion and is used as an antipruritic to treat mild pruritic conditions such as sunburn, eczema, rashes, poison ivy, chickenpox, and insect bites and stings...
, and stone. The Bristol and Exeter Railway
Bristol and Exeter Railway
The Bristol & Exeter Railway was a railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter.The company's head office was situated outside their Bristol station...
arrived in Weston-super-Mare in 1841, making it profitable to expand the village into a town. In 1842, Weston-super-Mare became a town with the granting of the Improvement and Market Act of May 1842. This act also proposed developing houses right over the brow of the hill. This would have gone straight through Worlebury Camp; however, the actual expansion never reached the site. By 1853, some development had occurred according to the proposed expansion, but it had skirted the hillfort and continued to the east.
20th century
In the early 20th century, the Worlebury fort itself was damaged by boys rolling stones, including some from the walls of the fort, down the hill on which it stands. The AxbridgeAxbridge
Axbridge is a town in Somerset, England, situated in the Sedgemoor district on the River Axe, near the southern edge of the Mendip Hills. The town population according to the 2001 census was 2,024.-History:...
District of the Somerset Archaeological Society was taking steps to prevent such damage from happening again.
Some of the trees planted in the early 19th century had become very large, and their roots were growing into the archaeological structures. In 2005, the Forestry Commission
Forestry Commission
The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for forestry in Great Britain. Its mission is to protect and expand Britain's forests and woodlands and increase their value to society and the environment....
gave permission for North Somerset
North Somerset
North Somerset is a unitary authority in England. Its area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset but it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the town hall in Weston-super-Mare....
Council to fell 300 trees to reduce the subsequent risks. A member of the North Somerset Council, Christopher Richards, said: "If we had a storm up here and these trees came down, then the entire hillfort could be destroyed."
See also
- Archeological site
- List of hill forts in England
- List of hill forts and ancient settlements in Somerset
External links
- Worlebury Village Homepage
- A street map with Worlebury Camp indicated by the arrow
- A bird's-eye view of present-day Worlebury Camp