City Design Group Archaeology – Bristol in the Iron Age

Ir on Age Bristol • Blaise Castle and Kings Weston Camp. These are about 300m Relatively little is known about Iron apart at the Blaise Castle Estate Age(c.550 BC - 1st century AD) in on Kings Weston Hill. Bristol. Most information comes from a few excavated Roman sites and Archaeological excavations suggest written descriptions in AD 43. Kings Weston had been abandoned by the time Blaise was in use. During the Iron Age Britain was occupied by different tribes. Bristol Two other hillforts, Stokeleigh was part of the territory of the Camp and Burwalls, lie on the Dobunni. This covered an area opposite side of the Gorge. Due to between northern Somerset and their location, the River Avon may Worcestershire. Extending as far west have been a boundary between two as Wiltshire and Oxfordshire, and groups of Dobunni. including the whole of Gloucestershire.

Hillforts - the best known type of Iron Age site

Hillforts were high status settlements and the largest were tribal centres. They generally consisted of a hill top site enclosed by earth banks and ditches. Tall, wooden posts usually stood on the top of the earth banks to strengthen their defences. Inside would have been circular wooden post built houses, animal pens and large food store pits.

Bristol has remnants of three hillforts, which are legally protected as Scheduled Ancient Monuments. These are:

• Clifton Down Camp - beside the Avon Gorge, immediately north of Suspension Bridge Road and

City Design Group For further information please contact: Shaping Quality Places Email: [email protected] Tel: 0117 9223044 1

City Design Group Archaeology – Bristol in the Iron Age

Ir on Age finds

Occasional chance finds of Iron Age material across Bristol, suggest the population then was widely-spread.

Most people probably lived in small farmsteads with their families. Evidence of these settlements has been found during excavation at Filwood, Henbury and at Hallen. Remains of two Iron Age circular houses were found at Hallen (then a The Roman invasion wetland) on the North Avon Levels. These were found in the early 1990s, When the Romans invaded Britain buried beneath river silts. there was resistance in some places. However, the Bristol area seems to A hearth or oven made of stone slabs have remained fairly peaceful. was found in one of the houses. Excavations suggest that for most, Pottery fragments and animal bones daily life here continued much as were also found. It is likely a small before. However, new customs were group of people seasonally lived on gradually adopted as Roman influence this site. They would have grazed spread. livestock on the wetland grasses.

When the area flooded in the winter months, this community would have moved to higher ground. They would have returned to Hallen the following summer. Similar settlements have been discovered at Northwick in South Gloucestershire and at Goldcliff in Wales. This suggests seasonal settlements for summer grazing of livestock were common around the Severn Estuary.

City Design Group For further information please contact: Shaping Quality Places Email: [email protected] Tel: 0117 9223044 2