by: Andrew Pyrka
Danebury is an Iron Age hill fort in Hampshire in England, about 19 kilometres (12 miles) north-west of Winchester (grid reference SU323376). The site, covering 5 hectares (12 acres), was excavated by Barry Cunliffe in the 1970s. Danebury is considered a type-site for hill forts, and was important in developing the understanding of hill forts, as very few others have been so intensively excavated.
Built in the 6th century BC, the fort was in use for almost 500 years, during a period when the number of hill forts in Wessex greatly increased. Danebury was remodelled several times, making it more complex and resulting in it becoming a "developed" hill fort. It is now protected as a Scheduled Ancient Monument and a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Until the 19th century very little was known about hill forts, as none had been excavated and their original purpose had been long forgotten. In the medieval period, their construction was attributed variously to iconic figures such as King Arthur, King Alfred, the Danes, Julius Caesar, and even giants. By the 18th century, it was widely thought that hill forts were Roman in origin. Interest in hill forts was roused by the investigation of a hill fort at Worlebury Hill in the early-19th century. The first excavation at Danebury was carried out in November 1859, under antiquarian Augustus Wollaston Franks. His workers cleared out an Iron Age pit that was 2 metres (7 ft) deep and 1.5 m (5 ft) in diameter, however they did not know the purpose of the pit.
The first widespread investigation of hill forts was carried out in the second half of the 19th century under Augustus Pitt-Rivers. Pitt-River's work on the hill forts of Sussex led him to the conclusion that most hill forts were built in the Iron Age, and it paved the way for future work on hill forts. In the 1920s and 1930s, there was "hill fort mania" in British archaeology; by 1940, about 80 had been archaeologically excavated.
In the late 1960s, Barry Cunliffe decided to examine a single hill fort and its surrounding territory in an attempt to shed light on Iron Age society, its politics, and population. With the permission of the site's owner, Hampshire County Council, archaeological excavations began in 1969 and continued until 1988. Over the twenty seasons archaeologists spent examining the site, they looked at the defences, the gateway, and excavated 57% of the interior, where the remains of wattle and timber houses were discovered. It was the lengthiest investigation of any hill fort in western Europe.
As you are all aware, 2010 season has taken all by surprise by the way the makers have chosen to keep away from the regular locations. Why they have chosen to do this is a question we simply cant answer, but it has created a problem for us as distances are becoming greater and circles are appearing in locations such as Yorkshire, so financially it is not viable for us to travel from one end of the country to the next. Due to the current financial climate and high fuel prices, please do accept our apology but in this instance we unable to bring you pole shot images.
(For Americans; Average UK unleaded gallon is currently *$6.67 as of July 2010.)
*based on a US gallon being 3.78 litres
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