1 00:00:01,305 --> 00:00:05,271 ♪♪ 2 00:00:05,271 --> 00:00:08,238 [ Birds chirping ] 3 00:00:08,238 --> 00:00:12,205 [ Detector beeping ] 4 00:00:12,205 --> 00:00:14,805 -I'm in my late 50s now, and this is a story 5 00:00:14,805 --> 00:00:19,205 that I learned probably 50 years ago from my grandfather. 6 00:00:20,938 --> 00:00:23,605 For me, this has always been on my family to-do list, 7 00:00:23,605 --> 00:00:26,305 you know, to justify my grandfather's legend, 8 00:00:26,305 --> 00:00:30,305 which was handed down to him by previous generations, 9 00:00:30,305 --> 00:00:34,171 that, somewhere in the park, is the lost village. 10 00:00:34,171 --> 00:00:39,838 ♪♪ 11 00:00:39,838 --> 00:00:41,838 I think somewhere like this is a time capsule, 12 00:00:41,838 --> 00:00:43,471 and who knows what's underneath. 13 00:00:43,471 --> 00:00:45,505 Nobody knows, actually, because we've never had 14 00:00:45,505 --> 00:00:48,271 an archeological dig here of any type at all. 15 00:00:48,271 --> 00:00:52,338 ♪♪ 16 00:00:52,338 --> 00:00:54,238 My grandfather said -- you know, the park's big here. 17 00:00:54,238 --> 00:00:55,871 It's 500 acres. 18 00:00:55,871 --> 00:00:58,038 But he always said, "This is the bit." 19 00:00:58,038 --> 00:01:00,938 If there is this lost village, it has to be, 20 00:01:00,938 --> 00:01:04,671 I think, in this part of the park. 21 00:01:04,671 --> 00:01:07,771 You know, you look at this landscape. 22 00:01:07,771 --> 00:01:10,038 It's so unspoiled. 23 00:01:10,038 --> 00:01:13,971 Nothing's disturbed this land for hundreds of years. 24 00:01:13,971 --> 00:01:18,671 And that's what gives me hope that, if we find something, 25 00:01:18,671 --> 00:01:20,805 it should be intact. 26 00:01:20,805 --> 00:01:24,871 I think this is where we'll strike gold if we strike it. 27 00:01:31,338 --> 00:01:35,805 ♪♪ 28 00:01:37,138 --> 00:01:39,938 "Secrets of the Dead" was made possible in part by 29 00:01:39,938 --> 00:01:43,738 contributions to your PBS station from viewers like you. 30 00:01:46,971 --> 00:01:53,205 ♪♪ 31 00:01:53,205 --> 00:01:55,205 -Sheltered from the modern world, 32 00:01:55,205 --> 00:01:59,105 Britain's great estates hold some of its most important 33 00:01:59,105 --> 00:02:01,005 historical secrets... 34 00:02:05,005 --> 00:02:08,138 ...few more so than Althorp, 35 00:02:08,138 --> 00:02:12,505 private home to the Spencer family for more than 500 years. 36 00:02:15,305 --> 00:02:19,338 Their estate stretches across 13,000 acres 37 00:02:19,338 --> 00:02:21,538 of Northamptonshire countryside. 38 00:02:26,005 --> 00:02:28,405 -My family started off as sheep farmers, 39 00:02:28,405 --> 00:02:30,738 and they did pretty well in the Midlands, 40 00:02:30,738 --> 00:02:33,405 and eventually they rented the land around here 41 00:02:33,405 --> 00:02:36,105 for their grazing in the 1400s. 42 00:02:36,105 --> 00:02:39,271 And they liked it so much that they bought the property 43 00:02:39,271 --> 00:02:42,705 and built a house here in 1508. 44 00:02:44,771 --> 00:02:46,971 We were essentially just very nouveau riche. 45 00:02:46,971 --> 00:02:49,538 We were sheep farmers who had done well. 46 00:02:52,338 --> 00:02:53,805 -At Althorp's heart 47 00:02:53,805 --> 00:02:58,238 is a 500-acre walled park 48 00:02:58,238 --> 00:03:00,305 and the Spencer family home. 49 00:03:00,305 --> 00:03:05,505 ♪♪ 50 00:03:05,505 --> 00:03:07,571 When his grandfather was in charge, 51 00:03:07,571 --> 00:03:12,338 Charles would play on the grounds with his sisters, 52 00:03:12,338 --> 00:03:17,005 including Diana, who would later become Princess of Wales. 53 00:03:17,005 --> 00:03:22,671 ♪♪ 54 00:03:22,671 --> 00:03:24,205 For three decades, 55 00:03:24,205 --> 00:03:28,138 Charles has held the title of 9th Earl Spencer. 56 00:03:31,371 --> 00:03:33,738 -When you take over a place like this, 57 00:03:33,738 --> 00:03:35,171 you know you're not the owner. 58 00:03:35,171 --> 00:03:36,971 You're just looking after it. 59 00:03:36,971 --> 00:03:40,971 And that is brought home to you by the paintings on the wall, 60 00:03:40,971 --> 00:03:43,138 all of these people who I feel 61 00:03:43,138 --> 00:03:46,238 are sort of judging in a polite way. 62 00:03:46,238 --> 00:03:48,671 I'm just realizing every time I see them 63 00:03:48,671 --> 00:03:51,238 that I am just a link in the chain. 64 00:03:55,038 --> 00:03:57,905 -Within these walls, Charles has written several 65 00:03:57,905 --> 00:04:01,271 best-selling books about British history. 66 00:04:01,271 --> 00:04:05,038 His latest took him 900 years into the past. 67 00:04:07,038 --> 00:04:10,438 Now he wants to dig up Althorp's grounds 68 00:04:10,438 --> 00:04:13,205 to find a lost medieval settlement. 69 00:04:15,738 --> 00:04:17,571 All he has to go on, though, 70 00:04:17,571 --> 00:04:20,605 is one reference in an ancient document, 71 00:04:20,605 --> 00:04:24,538 written almost 1,000 years ago. 72 00:04:24,538 --> 00:04:29,205 It states there was a village here once. 73 00:04:29,205 --> 00:04:32,805 A family legend, passed down by Charles' grandfather, 74 00:04:32,805 --> 00:04:35,505 places the village on a small hill, 75 00:04:35,505 --> 00:04:38,338 a few hundred yards west of the house. 76 00:04:42,805 --> 00:04:46,005 -The secrets that this land holds 77 00:04:46,005 --> 00:04:48,738 have never been shared with anyone. 78 00:04:48,738 --> 00:04:50,971 You know, they died with the last people 79 00:04:50,971 --> 00:04:52,605 who inhabited this area. 80 00:04:54,738 --> 00:04:57,138 I'd love to learn about the people who lived here 81 00:04:57,138 --> 00:04:59,138 long before my family were lucky enough to make 82 00:04:59,138 --> 00:05:02,505 some money from sheep farming and buy this part of England. 83 00:05:04,771 --> 00:05:07,438 I feel I would have paid my grandfather back 84 00:05:07,438 --> 00:05:09,105 for passing on the story. 85 00:05:09,105 --> 00:05:21,871 ♪♪ 86 00:05:21,871 --> 00:05:24,605 -For the first time in 500 years, 87 00:05:24,605 --> 00:05:28,671 the park's gates are being opened to an archeological dig. 88 00:05:28,671 --> 00:05:32,338 ♪♪ 89 00:05:32,338 --> 00:05:35,205 Leading the search for Althorp's lost village 90 00:05:35,205 --> 00:05:39,105 is Dr. Cat Jarman. 91 00:05:39,105 --> 00:05:41,438 Cat has been looking through ancient documents 92 00:05:41,438 --> 00:05:45,171 for any mentions of Althorp that predate 1508... 93 00:05:48,171 --> 00:05:51,371 ...the year the Spencers bought the estate. 94 00:05:51,371 --> 00:05:59,305 ♪♪ 95 00:05:59,305 --> 00:06:02,105 -The first ever record of Althorp is one 96 00:06:02,105 --> 00:06:04,338 that I'm sure one you know quite a lot about already, 97 00:06:04,338 --> 00:06:05,738 and that's in the Domesday Book. 98 00:06:05,738 --> 00:06:08,905 So this is the record that the Normans make, 99 00:06:08,905 --> 00:06:12,271 which is essentially a bit of a sort of tax-collection record 100 00:06:12,271 --> 00:06:16,205 around the country, and that lists who owns land 101 00:06:16,205 --> 00:06:18,605 at the time of the Norman Conquest. 102 00:06:18,605 --> 00:06:21,438 If you look through it, we can find Althorp. 103 00:06:21,438 --> 00:06:23,871 Here we go. -Oh, yes, "Olletorp." 104 00:06:27,271 --> 00:06:32,938 -That's the first record of Althorp, in 1066. 105 00:06:32,938 --> 00:06:36,705 It records that there are 10 households at the time. 106 00:06:36,705 --> 00:06:42,171 ♪♪ 107 00:06:42,171 --> 00:06:46,071 So it's not a big village, but it's a reasonable size. 108 00:06:46,071 --> 00:06:47,405 -And probably a farming village, 109 00:06:47,405 --> 00:06:48,738 because that's what they all were. 110 00:06:48,738 --> 00:06:50,338 -Precisely. 111 00:06:54,471 --> 00:06:57,405 We've got two landowners at the time. 112 00:06:57,405 --> 00:07:00,171 One of them is an owner called Gytha. 113 00:07:00,171 --> 00:07:02,371 This is the name of a woman. And you actually -- 114 00:07:02,371 --> 00:07:04,305 -Oh, wow. -Yeah, so you actually only 115 00:07:04,305 --> 00:07:07,838 really have a handful of female landowners. 116 00:07:07,838 --> 00:07:10,005 They're very rare at the time. 117 00:07:10,005 --> 00:07:13,438 -So how would she have been allowed to own land? 118 00:07:13,438 --> 00:07:15,805 -It seems to be she was a widow at the time, 119 00:07:15,805 --> 00:07:18,005 so she got it through her husband. 120 00:07:18,005 --> 00:07:20,471 He was called Ralph the Timid. 121 00:07:20,471 --> 00:07:23,071 -How awful to be known to history as Ralph the Timid. 122 00:07:23,071 --> 00:07:24,138 -[ Laughs ] Yes. 123 00:07:24,138 --> 00:07:25,705 -It's not Alfred the Great, is it? 124 00:07:25,705 --> 00:07:26,905 -No, that's right. 125 00:07:26,905 --> 00:07:29,838 He was also the grandson of Ethelred the Unready, 126 00:07:29,838 --> 00:07:31,505 so the whole family is -- 127 00:07:31,505 --> 00:07:33,938 -A family gene of failure. -Yeah. Absolutely. 128 00:07:36,438 --> 00:07:41,471 -Gytha disappears from the records after 1066. 129 00:07:41,471 --> 00:07:44,471 But in another document, Cat's found evidence 130 00:07:44,471 --> 00:07:46,771 that a later owner of the humble village 131 00:07:46,771 --> 00:07:50,438 may have built a substantial house at Althorp. 132 00:07:54,305 --> 00:07:56,771 -So this is a charter that records 133 00:07:56,771 --> 00:08:01,171 transfer of ownership of the manor of Althorp 134 00:08:01,171 --> 00:08:05,105 happening 1267 or 1268. 135 00:08:05,105 --> 00:08:07,838 And so that means that there was a manor here 136 00:08:07,838 --> 00:08:10,305 already in the sort of 13th century. 137 00:08:10,305 --> 00:08:12,738 -But a manor means a manor house, does it? 138 00:08:12,738 --> 00:08:15,171 -Yeah, we think that actually does mean a house, 139 00:08:15,171 --> 00:08:16,971 because the same reference 140 00:08:16,971 --> 00:08:19,471 keeps coming up in some later charters as well. 141 00:08:19,471 --> 00:08:21,171 -How extraordinary. 142 00:08:21,171 --> 00:08:23,438 Well, I never knew any reference to a manor here 143 00:08:23,438 --> 00:08:26,638 before we built a house here in 1508. 144 00:08:29,338 --> 00:08:31,571 I don't think anyone knew about this manor house. 145 00:08:31,571 --> 00:08:34,505 I mean, I certainly didn't before all this, 146 00:08:34,505 --> 00:08:36,971 and I never heard about it from my grandfather or my father, 147 00:08:36,971 --> 00:08:40,338 so I think this is new information for my family. 148 00:08:43,705 --> 00:08:46,105 -The medieval manor and the village 149 00:08:46,105 --> 00:08:48,538 both disappear from the historical records 150 00:08:48,538 --> 00:08:51,205 before Charles' ancestors arrive. 151 00:08:51,205 --> 00:08:57,005 ♪♪ 152 00:08:57,005 --> 00:08:59,738 The only way to learn more about who lived on the land 153 00:08:59,738 --> 00:09:02,138 where the Spencer estate now sits 154 00:09:02,138 --> 00:09:06,238 is to locate, and dig up, the settlement. 155 00:09:08,505 --> 00:09:11,905 But among archeologists, villages of this period 156 00:09:11,905 --> 00:09:14,605 are notoriously difficult to find. 157 00:09:18,038 --> 00:09:22,538 -We refer to the period more or less from 450 to 1066 158 00:09:22,538 --> 00:09:25,838 as the Anglo-Saxon period. 159 00:09:25,838 --> 00:09:28,371 It is really difficult to find 160 00:09:28,371 --> 00:09:31,738 the archeological remains of early medieval settlements. 161 00:09:31,738 --> 00:09:35,405 And that's essentially because especially Anglo-Saxon England 162 00:09:35,405 --> 00:09:39,771 was very much a wooden world. 163 00:09:39,771 --> 00:09:43,671 All the buildings were made of perishable materials -- 164 00:09:43,671 --> 00:09:46,371 wood, thatch, that sort of thing. 165 00:09:46,371 --> 00:09:50,738 So, really, almost nothing remains after 1,000 years. 166 00:09:52,405 --> 00:09:54,405 The village of Althorp is recorded 167 00:09:54,405 --> 00:09:56,371 as having had only 10 households, 168 00:09:56,371 --> 00:09:59,538 so we're not talking about a huge settlement. 169 00:10:01,838 --> 00:10:03,971 We tend to think now of villages 170 00:10:03,971 --> 00:10:08,905 as being quite clustered along a street or around a green. 171 00:10:08,905 --> 00:10:11,771 But you don't get that in the 9th, 10th, 172 00:10:11,771 --> 00:10:13,571 or even the earlier 11th centuries. 173 00:10:13,571 --> 00:10:16,771 A village would have looked quite different then. 174 00:10:16,771 --> 00:10:21,605 Each household was within its own enclosure or farmstead, 175 00:10:21,605 --> 00:10:25,205 because everyone really, essentially, was a farmer. 176 00:10:28,538 --> 00:10:31,171 To find an Anglo-Saxon settlement, 177 00:10:31,171 --> 00:10:33,738 you need a certain amount of luck. [ Chuckles ] 178 00:10:33,738 --> 00:10:35,671 Sometimes they're found by accident. 179 00:10:35,671 --> 00:10:37,638 People weren't expecting to find them. 180 00:10:37,638 --> 00:10:40,905 But you also have to use a range of tools and clues, 181 00:10:40,905 --> 00:10:43,205 and those clues could be in the landscape. 182 00:10:43,205 --> 00:10:47,238 They could be found by walking across a plowed field 183 00:10:47,238 --> 00:10:51,471 and identifying Anglo-Saxon pottery or other finds. 184 00:10:51,471 --> 00:10:53,671 So it's a little bit like the needle 185 00:10:53,671 --> 00:10:55,471 in the proverbial haystack. 186 00:10:57,738 --> 00:11:01,505 -The good news for Cat is that the estate's past inhabitants 187 00:11:01,505 --> 00:11:04,238 have left clues across the landscape. 188 00:11:07,971 --> 00:11:11,705 -Believe it or not, this area here was a lake. 189 00:11:11,705 --> 00:11:13,938 I'd loved to have seen it back as a lake, 190 00:11:13,938 --> 00:11:17,438 but I don't think it's what Lord Spencer thinks. 191 00:11:19,438 --> 00:11:22,471 -Althorp's conservation officer, Adey Greeno, 192 00:11:22,471 --> 00:11:24,605 knows the lay of this land. 193 00:11:29,205 --> 00:11:31,571 He wants to show Cat how it's been shaped 194 00:11:31,571 --> 00:11:36,671 by a medieval plowing technique called ridge and furrow. 195 00:11:36,671 --> 00:11:41,038 -I've never quite seen such extensive ridges 196 00:11:41,038 --> 00:11:43,238 -It's been preserved well in the park here. 197 00:11:43,238 --> 00:11:45,938 -Yeah. 198 00:11:45,938 --> 00:11:48,471 I feel like you can just imagine 199 00:11:48,471 --> 00:11:51,271 an ox pulling a plow up and down 200 00:11:51,271 --> 00:11:55,538 and creating these great, big ruts. 201 00:11:55,538 --> 00:11:58,571 We can properly feel them when you're going over, can't you? 202 00:11:58,571 --> 00:12:01,005 -Yeah, you wouldn't drive too quickly over it. 203 00:12:01,005 --> 00:12:03,271 -No, although that might be quite fun, but... 204 00:12:06,538 --> 00:12:08,371 -Evidence of medieval plowing 205 00:12:08,371 --> 00:12:11,371 is often destroyed by modern agriculture. 206 00:12:14,405 --> 00:12:17,271 Althorp's well-preserved ridge and furrow 207 00:12:17,271 --> 00:12:20,038 is within a stone's throw of the hill 208 00:12:20,038 --> 00:12:23,971 where legend places the lost village. 209 00:12:23,971 --> 00:12:28,138 For Cat, that's a good sign. 210 00:12:28,138 --> 00:12:31,505 -What's so exciting about it is that this was enclosed 211 00:12:31,505 --> 00:12:35,005 as a park about 500 years ago, which means that it's been 212 00:12:35,005 --> 00:12:38,605 more or less untouched by modern farming. 213 00:12:38,605 --> 00:12:41,605 That's really, really quite rare. 214 00:12:41,605 --> 00:12:44,271 But also, we are the first archeologists to come in here 215 00:12:44,271 --> 00:12:46,038 to investigate. 216 00:12:46,038 --> 00:12:49,471 That means that if there really is a medieval village here, 217 00:12:49,471 --> 00:12:52,338 it could actually be essentially frozen in time 218 00:12:52,338 --> 00:12:54,405 and just there for us to find. 219 00:12:54,405 --> 00:13:03,838 ♪♪ 220 00:13:03,838 --> 00:13:05,138 I've got to make some decisions. 221 00:13:05,138 --> 00:13:08,838 I've got a couple of weeks, and I've got a team. 222 00:13:08,838 --> 00:13:11,205 I've got to work out where on earth on this hill 223 00:13:11,205 --> 00:13:13,171 to put in my first trench. 224 00:13:13,171 --> 00:13:17,038 [ Equipment beeping ] 225 00:13:17,038 --> 00:13:19,338 There's a lot of stuff going on in the landscape, 226 00:13:19,338 --> 00:13:20,838 and it's really exciting to see that, 227 00:13:20,838 --> 00:13:23,305 because so much of this is clearly not natural. 228 00:13:23,305 --> 00:13:25,005 We've got lots of lumps here. 229 00:13:25,005 --> 00:13:26,938 We've got some really nice ridges, 230 00:13:26,938 --> 00:13:28,671 things that we just know 231 00:13:28,671 --> 00:13:31,938 aren't part of the natural landscape of Althorp. 232 00:13:31,938 --> 00:13:34,105 -Nice lumps and bumps here. -Yeah. 233 00:13:34,105 --> 00:13:36,338 -Oh, that's -- oh, is that good! 234 00:13:36,338 --> 00:13:38,805 Ooh! Is that lovely! 235 00:13:38,805 --> 00:13:40,105 -I think that's quite convincing, isn't it? 236 00:13:40,105 --> 00:13:42,938 -That's something there. That's real. 237 00:13:42,938 --> 00:13:46,005 -Joined by veteran archeologist Mark Horton, 238 00:13:46,005 --> 00:13:49,705 the team surveys undulations in the landscape 239 00:13:49,705 --> 00:13:51,105 from the ground... 240 00:13:53,271 --> 00:13:56,505 ...and from the air. 241 00:13:56,505 --> 00:13:58,871 -I was using kites back in the 1980s, 242 00:13:58,871 --> 00:14:01,671 and you had to wait for the wind to blow, 243 00:14:01,671 --> 00:14:04,238 The whole thing was incredibly dangerous. 244 00:14:04,238 --> 00:14:07,405 I've still got a cupboard full of banana-shaped cameras 245 00:14:07,405 --> 00:14:10,671 where the kites crashed into the ground. 246 00:14:10,671 --> 00:14:13,471 [ Drone buzzing ] 247 00:14:13,471 --> 00:14:15,071 It's like sort of plowing a field. 248 00:14:15,071 --> 00:14:18,938 It's going backwards and forwards at regular intervals, 249 00:14:18,938 --> 00:14:22,205 and as it's doing that it's taking multiple photographs. 250 00:14:24,505 --> 00:14:26,405 We can then stitch all that together 251 00:14:26,405 --> 00:14:31,071 to create one highly accurate image of the whole site. 252 00:14:35,038 --> 00:14:36,638 -All these blobs are basically 253 00:14:36,638 --> 00:14:38,638 where there's something interesting. 254 00:14:38,638 --> 00:14:40,171 -Yes, and what does that tell you? 255 00:14:40,171 --> 00:14:42,105 Just that there's something metallic down there? 256 00:14:42,105 --> 00:14:44,171 -It can be metallic, but it could anything 257 00:14:44,171 --> 00:14:46,371 that's just essentially disturbed 258 00:14:46,371 --> 00:14:49,205 the magnetic field of the soil, is going to give a reading. 259 00:14:49,205 --> 00:14:50,271 -I see. -So it means that there's 260 00:14:50,271 --> 00:14:52,871 some activity has happened there. 261 00:14:52,871 --> 00:14:55,471 I really like the look of this one up here, 262 00:14:55,471 --> 00:14:58,471 so that's just over here in that field. 263 00:14:58,471 --> 00:15:00,571 There's definitely something going on there, 264 00:15:00,571 --> 00:15:03,571 and that, to me, is a really promising place to start. 265 00:15:03,571 --> 00:15:05,238 -Fantastic. 266 00:15:08,905 --> 00:15:11,971 For me, this is all about trying to find the people 267 00:15:11,971 --> 00:15:14,938 who lived here in the distant past. 268 00:15:14,938 --> 00:15:16,538 I've always found when I write about history, 269 00:15:16,538 --> 00:15:19,171 you know, humans don't change much. 270 00:15:19,171 --> 00:15:21,338 They loved and they lived and they had disappointments 271 00:15:21,338 --> 00:15:23,071 and they had tragedies in their lives. 272 00:15:23,071 --> 00:15:25,671 They had all sorts of things going on, just like we do. 273 00:15:25,671 --> 00:15:27,605 The most exciting thing for me will be to connect 274 00:15:27,605 --> 00:15:29,171 with lives from the past. 275 00:15:29,171 --> 00:15:31,338 That's what I hope we find -- 276 00:15:31,338 --> 00:15:33,505 remnants of real people. 277 00:15:33,505 --> 00:15:57,105 ♪♪ 278 00:15:57,105 --> 00:15:58,971 -For the next two weeks, 279 00:15:58,971 --> 00:16:02,505 the archeologists will be living and working on this hill. 280 00:16:02,505 --> 00:16:09,805 ♪♪ 281 00:16:09,805 --> 00:16:11,405 But they're not alone. 282 00:16:16,238 --> 00:16:18,238 Joining the camp for part of the dig 283 00:16:18,238 --> 00:16:21,271 is a team of historical re-enactors. 284 00:16:21,271 --> 00:16:23,605 -[ Blows horn ] 285 00:16:23,605 --> 00:16:29,038 ♪♪ 286 00:16:29,038 --> 00:16:32,905 Their goal is to re-create life in the early medieval period 287 00:16:32,905 --> 00:16:34,538 as accurately as possible. 288 00:16:34,538 --> 00:16:38,438 [ Indistinct conversations ] 289 00:16:38,438 --> 00:16:41,038 As experts in traditional crafts, 290 00:16:41,038 --> 00:16:43,871 they're on hand to help interpret any artifacts 291 00:16:43,871 --> 00:16:46,238 Cat's team might unearth 292 00:16:46,238 --> 00:16:49,738 and to then make copies of the original items. 293 00:16:49,738 --> 00:16:53,105 ♪♪ 294 00:16:53,105 --> 00:16:55,205 -Quite something, isn't that? -Yes. Yeah. 295 00:16:55,205 --> 00:16:56,771 -That would go through an awful lot, wouldn't it? 296 00:16:56,771 --> 00:16:58,471 -It did, yeah. I think this is the sort of thing 297 00:16:58,471 --> 00:17:00,538 that would pierce through chain mail as well. 298 00:17:03,071 --> 00:17:05,338 -By re-creating it, it gives you a real sense 299 00:17:05,338 --> 00:17:07,805 of what people saw in their everyday lives, 300 00:17:07,805 --> 00:17:10,271 as opposed to what we've now been left with. 301 00:17:10,271 --> 00:17:13,405 So, you know, it's really nice to sort of look at the object 302 00:17:13,405 --> 00:17:16,471 and imagine how their world might have looked to them, 303 00:17:16,471 --> 00:17:18,738 rather than the remains that we have. 304 00:17:18,738 --> 00:17:22,238 -[ Plays flute ] 305 00:17:22,238 --> 00:17:25,338 -I've always quite liked the Anglo-Saxon period 306 00:17:25,338 --> 00:17:28,771 largely because it's a difficult period to study. 307 00:17:28,771 --> 00:17:32,171 There is good archeology there and some historical sources, 308 00:17:32,171 --> 00:17:34,838 but much less so than, say, the Roman period. 309 00:17:34,838 --> 00:17:36,871 So you find yourself with just enough mystery 310 00:17:36,871 --> 00:17:38,705 to keep it interesting. 311 00:17:38,705 --> 00:17:41,338 It often gets called the Dark Ages, 312 00:17:41,338 --> 00:17:44,105 usually because of the lack of evidence for certain things. 313 00:17:44,105 --> 00:17:47,105 But, actually, many things were bright, colorful. 314 00:17:47,105 --> 00:17:49,405 Cloth was dyed in bright colors. 315 00:17:49,405 --> 00:17:51,571 Items were made out of polished metal. 316 00:17:51,571 --> 00:17:53,071 There was glassware. 317 00:17:53,071 --> 00:17:54,738 So it would have been would have been a really spectacular place 318 00:17:54,738 --> 00:17:56,671 to visit, not the kind of dirty, 319 00:17:56,671 --> 00:17:59,005 dingy place that people often imagine. 320 00:17:59,005 --> 00:18:01,371 [ Tools scraping ] 321 00:18:04,638 --> 00:18:06,105 -A few feet away, 322 00:18:06,105 --> 00:18:09,571 the archeologists have made their first discovery. 323 00:18:12,038 --> 00:18:15,738 -You see this patch here of slightly lighter, 324 00:18:15,738 --> 00:18:18,071 quite limestoney stuff? 325 00:18:18,071 --> 00:18:20,938 -Yeah. -It is making quite a nice line. 326 00:18:20,938 --> 00:18:22,438 -It does, doesn't it? 327 00:18:22,438 --> 00:18:24,138 I'm not gonna say the word "wall," but... 328 00:18:24,138 --> 00:18:25,338 -[ Laughs ] I know. 329 00:18:25,338 --> 00:18:27,638 But it's looking very linear. 330 00:18:27,638 --> 00:18:28,905 -Don't know what it is at the moment, 331 00:18:28,905 --> 00:18:30,938 but it looks very much like a wall. 332 00:18:30,938 --> 00:18:32,438 That is genuinely very exciting, 333 00:18:32,438 --> 00:18:34,871 because we've got below the topsoil 334 00:18:34,871 --> 00:18:37,105 and possibly down to more 335 00:18:37,105 --> 00:18:38,838 something that could be medieval level. 336 00:18:38,838 --> 00:18:42,638 So this is really promising. 337 00:18:42,638 --> 00:18:47,538 -Could this be part of the legendary Anglo-Saxon village? 338 00:18:47,538 --> 00:18:50,405 Archeologists can often date structures 339 00:18:50,405 --> 00:18:52,938 by finding other objects like pottery 340 00:18:52,938 --> 00:18:56,705 in the same layer of earth. 341 00:18:56,705 --> 00:18:59,171 -So it's only one tiny, little piece of pottery, 342 00:18:59,171 --> 00:19:02,438 but this is definitely early. -Oh, fantastic. 343 00:19:02,438 --> 00:19:06,038 -So it may well be early medieval or possibly Roman. 344 00:19:06,038 --> 00:19:08,938 -Wow! Well, that's interesting. -Yeah. 345 00:19:08,938 --> 00:19:10,338 -'Cause, of course, the Anglo-Saxons 346 00:19:10,338 --> 00:19:13,938 usually built on Roman ruins, didn't they, as well? 347 00:19:13,938 --> 00:19:16,238 -Yeah, quite often you get that continuity, 348 00:19:16,238 --> 00:19:17,871 so you get the same sort of sites 349 00:19:17,871 --> 00:19:19,238 that are used in Roman times 350 00:19:19,238 --> 00:19:21,005 and then they continue to be used 351 00:19:21,005 --> 00:19:22,671 by the Anglo-Saxons as well. 352 00:19:26,905 --> 00:19:31,205 -The Romans occupied Britain for almost 400 years. 353 00:19:33,305 --> 00:19:36,971 After they left, the Anglo-Saxon period began... 354 00:19:39,438 --> 00:19:41,071 ...roughly 1,000 years 355 00:19:41,071 --> 00:19:43,838 before the Spencers made Althorp their home. 356 00:19:43,838 --> 00:19:53,338 ♪♪ 357 00:19:53,338 --> 00:19:55,605 A mile from Cat's dig site, 358 00:19:55,605 --> 00:19:58,771 there's evidence of a Roman building on the estate. 359 00:19:58,771 --> 00:20:04,905 ♪♪ 360 00:20:04,905 --> 00:20:07,805 These fields have been regularly plowed, 361 00:20:07,805 --> 00:20:10,971 which has brought numerous artifacts to the surface. 362 00:20:13,771 --> 00:20:17,638 Adey's been finding bits and pieces here for decades. 363 00:20:20,638 --> 00:20:21,771 -You've got something? 364 00:20:21,771 --> 00:20:25,405 Oh, yeah, a nice piece of pottery there. 365 00:20:25,405 --> 00:20:28,105 Oh, got one. 366 00:20:28,105 --> 00:20:31,705 This one's nice. Look. 367 00:20:31,705 --> 00:20:33,505 -Oh, that's nice, isn't it? -That's a really nice one. 368 00:20:33,505 --> 00:20:36,671 Definitely Roman. -So would that be part of a pot? 369 00:20:36,671 --> 00:20:38,405 -Yeah, I think this looks like 370 00:20:38,405 --> 00:20:41,238 it's a sort of quite shallow plate, almost. 371 00:20:41,238 --> 00:20:42,338 Can you see? -Yes. 372 00:20:42,338 --> 00:20:44,205 -You've got a nice base. -Yes. 373 00:20:44,205 --> 00:20:47,071 -Very Roman. -Yes. 374 00:20:47,071 --> 00:20:48,538 It's nice, isn't it? 375 00:20:51,038 --> 00:20:55,138 Couple of more bits of the pottery. 376 00:20:58,605 --> 00:21:01,971 -There's loads of it. 377 00:21:01,971 --> 00:21:05,271 The Romans sort of just dropped things everywhere. 378 00:21:05,271 --> 00:21:06,938 -Yes. -So really not much 379 00:21:06,938 --> 00:21:11,238 has happened in this field in the past 2,000 years. 380 00:21:11,238 --> 00:21:12,505 -No. 381 00:21:12,505 --> 00:21:14,971 It's, a very special place, isn't it? 382 00:21:18,971 --> 00:21:21,571 -Wherever the Romans established settlements, 383 00:21:21,571 --> 00:21:24,071 the Anglo-Saxons often followed. 384 00:21:26,505 --> 00:21:30,671 So to discover that Romans were living at Althorp bodes well. 385 00:21:33,771 --> 00:21:35,471 But unlike the Romans, 386 00:21:35,471 --> 00:21:39,638 who built stone houses filled with pottery, 387 00:21:39,638 --> 00:21:42,538 the Anglo-Saxons lived more spartanly. 388 00:21:45,171 --> 00:21:47,071 -Anglo-Saxon settlements, generally speaking, 389 00:21:47,071 --> 00:21:50,938 produce a lot less stuff than Roman settlements 390 00:21:50,938 --> 00:21:54,338 or later medieval settlements. 391 00:21:54,338 --> 00:21:57,238 There was less mass-produced material culture. 392 00:21:57,238 --> 00:22:00,205 People used less pottery, less coinage. 393 00:22:00,205 --> 00:22:03,538 The buildings were almost entirely of timber 394 00:22:03,538 --> 00:22:05,938 and other perishable materials. 395 00:22:05,938 --> 00:22:10,771 There is just less archeology from that period. 396 00:22:10,771 --> 00:22:15,205 So they truly are quite elusive things to find 397 00:22:15,205 --> 00:22:17,871 for archeologists. 398 00:22:17,871 --> 00:22:21,038 Really, you don't know until you've excavated 399 00:22:21,038 --> 00:22:23,005 whether or not, you know, "X" marks the spot, 400 00:22:23,005 --> 00:22:26,138 whether or not you've really found the settlement proper. 401 00:22:26,138 --> 00:22:31,405 ♪♪ 402 00:22:31,405 --> 00:22:35,571 -Because Anglo-Saxon settlements are so hard to locate, 403 00:22:35,571 --> 00:22:39,138 archeologists rely on finding tiny domestic items 404 00:22:39,138 --> 00:22:40,738 to help identify them. 405 00:22:44,905 --> 00:22:47,371 Some of the most common artifacts from the period 406 00:22:47,371 --> 00:22:52,905 are fragments of combs made from bone and antler. 407 00:22:52,905 --> 00:22:55,505 Adam reconstructs what they would have looked like, 408 00:22:55,505 --> 00:22:58,138 using items found at archeological digs 409 00:22:58,138 --> 00:23:00,571 as his guide. 410 00:23:00,571 --> 00:23:01,971 -This particular comb I'm making here 411 00:23:01,971 --> 00:23:05,205 was actually found only a few miles away in Northampton. 412 00:23:05,205 --> 00:23:07,038 And it's a rather simple little one, 413 00:23:07,038 --> 00:23:10,205 but it also came within a case, 414 00:23:10,205 --> 00:23:13,871 and that would help protect the teeth when it wasn't being used. 415 00:23:13,871 --> 00:23:15,805 I absolutely love making combs. 416 00:23:15,805 --> 00:23:17,705 When they're all finished, they're sort of white 417 00:23:17,705 --> 00:23:20,071 and they're shiny and they're really attractive 418 00:23:20,071 --> 00:23:22,638 and they've got these decorative patterns cut into them. 419 00:23:22,638 --> 00:23:24,871 So, you know, as well as combing your hair, 420 00:23:24,871 --> 00:23:26,205 they look absolutely fantastic 421 00:23:26,205 --> 00:23:28,038 and they're a way of showing off, 422 00:23:28,038 --> 00:23:31,005 for me as a re-enactor as well as people in the past. 423 00:23:31,005 --> 00:23:36,238 ♪♪ 424 00:23:36,238 --> 00:23:39,105 -So far, though, the archeologists have found 425 00:23:39,105 --> 00:23:42,305 no trace of people from the medieval past. 426 00:23:44,171 --> 00:23:47,205 -It turns out that whoever was here was very, very tidy. 427 00:23:47,205 --> 00:23:50,238 [ Laughter ] 428 00:23:50,238 --> 00:23:53,638 I am losing hope a little bit. 429 00:23:56,105 --> 00:23:59,271 It's almost interesting that there's nothing at all. 430 00:23:59,271 --> 00:24:02,038 -I mean, they must be here somewhere, right? 431 00:24:02,038 --> 00:24:06,205 They can't -- They must have had some stuff that we can find. 432 00:24:08,238 --> 00:24:10,038 -Although these sites don't have a lot of material 433 00:24:10,038 --> 00:24:13,105 and they are difficult -- notoriously difficult to find, 434 00:24:13,105 --> 00:24:16,371 we're really not getting much at all. 435 00:24:16,371 --> 00:24:19,605 I really desperately wanted to have something to show Charles 436 00:24:19,605 --> 00:24:22,171 to confidently say "We are on the right track. 437 00:24:22,171 --> 00:24:25,405 This is, hopefully, your village." 438 00:24:25,405 --> 00:24:27,138 At the moment, I don't know if I really have 439 00:24:27,138 --> 00:24:28,771 very much to show him. 440 00:24:28,771 --> 00:24:35,738 ♪♪ 441 00:24:35,738 --> 00:24:38,038 -But Charles has something he wants to show 442 00:24:38,038 --> 00:24:39,605 the archeologists 443 00:24:39,605 --> 00:24:43,838 in the labyrinth of cellars underneath his house. 444 00:24:43,838 --> 00:24:46,871 -How do you ever work out where you are? 445 00:24:46,871 --> 00:24:48,038 -Well, I get lost. 446 00:24:48,038 --> 00:24:50,371 I mean, it is a bit of a rabbit warren. 447 00:24:50,371 --> 00:24:55,705 ♪♪ 448 00:24:55,705 --> 00:24:57,671 I remember the first time going down to the cellars, 449 00:24:57,671 --> 00:25:00,571 I found it absolutely terrifying. 450 00:25:00,571 --> 00:25:05,338 It has a sort of horror-film feel to it. 451 00:25:09,105 --> 00:25:10,171 But at the same time, 452 00:25:10,171 --> 00:25:11,838 they're so historic, those spaces. 453 00:25:11,838 --> 00:25:14,705 Some of them I haven't even been into, I don't think. 454 00:25:14,705 --> 00:25:16,471 This is the one -- 455 00:25:16,471 --> 00:25:17,905 Hang on. I got the wrong one. -Wrong one. 456 00:25:17,905 --> 00:25:19,805 [ Laughter ] 457 00:25:19,805 --> 00:25:21,871 -It all looks very unfamiliar. 458 00:25:21,871 --> 00:25:23,638 [ Laughter ] 459 00:25:25,238 --> 00:25:27,571 -Charles brings Mark to a part of the cellars 460 00:25:27,571 --> 00:25:30,271 he thinks could be older than the rest. 461 00:25:34,071 --> 00:25:37,305 After Cat found written evidence that there may once have been 462 00:25:37,305 --> 00:25:40,505 a medieval manor house at Althorp, 463 00:25:40,505 --> 00:25:42,138 Charles has been wondering 464 00:25:42,138 --> 00:25:44,805 if it could be underneath his own home. 465 00:25:47,171 --> 00:25:48,471 -It always intrigued me, actually, 466 00:25:48,471 --> 00:25:50,138 why my family built a house here. 467 00:25:50,138 --> 00:25:51,705 It's not on an obvious point, 468 00:25:51,705 --> 00:25:54,138 because normally they're on hills 469 00:25:54,138 --> 00:25:57,738 so you got a good view, whereas we're slightly in a dip. 470 00:25:57,738 --> 00:25:59,838 And so it's fascinating to me to think 471 00:25:59,838 --> 00:26:03,005 that possibly a medieval manor house 472 00:26:03,005 --> 00:26:07,338 was here before this building was ever conceived. 473 00:26:07,338 --> 00:26:10,638 I'll be fascinated to know if we chose to build 474 00:26:10,638 --> 00:26:14,538 on somebody else's foundations. 475 00:26:14,538 --> 00:26:17,071 Well, there's some vaulted arches down here 476 00:26:17,071 --> 00:26:21,305 which seem to be very old with these old baths, 477 00:26:21,305 --> 00:26:26,671 but the vaulted ceilings -- beautifully made. 478 00:26:26,671 --> 00:26:30,538 -But I don't think it's early. 479 00:26:30,538 --> 00:26:31,905 -Right. 480 00:26:31,905 --> 00:26:33,338 -Ah! 481 00:26:33,338 --> 00:26:36,005 But what's going on here? 482 00:26:36,005 --> 00:26:39,071 Look at this poor wall that's really battered. 483 00:26:39,071 --> 00:26:41,571 Can I move this screen? 484 00:26:41,571 --> 00:26:44,471 -One, two, three. -Three. Ugh! 485 00:26:44,471 --> 00:26:46,738 -Slightly heavier than it looks. -Ah! 486 00:26:48,905 --> 00:26:50,905 -And where are we gonna put it? 487 00:26:50,905 --> 00:26:53,538 -We don't want to -- Can we put it against the bath? 488 00:26:53,538 --> 00:26:56,305 -Well, it's gonna break. [ Both laugh ] 489 00:26:56,305 --> 00:26:58,271 I've got it, I've got it. -You've got it there? 490 00:26:58,271 --> 00:27:00,971 -Yeah. -So look. 491 00:27:00,971 --> 00:27:04,238 This is an earlier foundation. -Oh, my goodness. 492 00:27:04,238 --> 00:27:05,705 Yes, that's slightly different, isn't it? 493 00:27:05,705 --> 00:27:07,005 -Yes. 494 00:27:07,005 --> 00:27:12,405 So this wall must be part of an earlier building. 495 00:27:12,405 --> 00:27:14,471 -Yes, pre-1508, you reckon? 496 00:27:14,471 --> 00:27:16,671 -Pre-150-- could be earlier. I mean, you know, 497 00:27:16,671 --> 00:27:19,438 unfortunately, we archeologists can't date stone. 498 00:27:19,438 --> 00:27:22,071 -No. -[ Laughs ] Could be 1508, 499 00:27:22,071 --> 00:27:25,605 or it could be late medieval. -Yeah. How fantastic. 500 00:27:25,605 --> 00:27:27,938 Well, it does look considerably older than the bit above it, 501 00:27:27,938 --> 00:27:29,405 doesn't it? 502 00:27:31,038 --> 00:27:33,205 -Could this remnant of ancient wall 503 00:27:33,205 --> 00:27:35,571 be part of the lost medieval manor? 504 00:27:38,871 --> 00:27:43,038 It's not the only mystery in these cellars. 505 00:27:43,038 --> 00:27:46,371 Mark is finding evidence that generations of Spencers 506 00:27:46,371 --> 00:27:48,905 have patched up their famous house 507 00:27:48,905 --> 00:27:51,038 in unexpected ways. 508 00:27:53,105 --> 00:27:55,005 -What is that, Victorian or something? 509 00:27:55,005 --> 00:27:57,371 -Well, early 19th century, I think. 510 00:27:57,371 --> 00:27:58,838 -This is original, isn't it? 511 00:27:58,838 --> 00:28:00,505 -Yeah, but look -- it's been built up. 512 00:28:00,505 --> 00:28:01,705 -Oh, yeah. 513 00:28:01,705 --> 00:28:04,171 -The whole thing is a wonderful hodgepodge. 514 00:28:04,171 --> 00:28:05,805 -Yes, there's all sorts down here. 515 00:28:05,805 --> 00:28:07,571 -And I think you could almost sneeze, 516 00:28:07,571 --> 00:28:08,805 and the house would fall down. 517 00:28:08,805 --> 00:28:10,838 -Oh, don't tell my insurers. -No. 518 00:28:10,838 --> 00:28:12,238 [ Both laugh ] 519 00:28:13,638 --> 00:28:17,605 -It's an ever-consuming process, 520 00:28:17,605 --> 00:28:19,571 trying to understand a house like this, 521 00:28:19,571 --> 00:28:22,738 because there's always something new to find out 522 00:28:22,738 --> 00:28:27,171 and that, in my 30 years of running this place, 523 00:28:27,171 --> 00:28:29,538 is the one lesson I know -- 524 00:28:29,538 --> 00:28:31,571 there's always a surprise round the corner. 525 00:28:31,571 --> 00:28:33,571 [ Whimsical tune plays ] 526 00:28:33,571 --> 00:28:37,071 ♪♪ 527 00:28:41,805 --> 00:28:45,938 -On the hill, the team has begun digging in a second spot. 528 00:28:48,038 --> 00:28:52,338 Here, their survey has revealed potential human activity 529 00:28:52,338 --> 00:28:54,271 across a large area. 530 00:28:58,538 --> 00:29:01,505 But so far, they've only found building material 531 00:29:01,505 --> 00:29:03,471 from the last few hundred years. 532 00:29:06,305 --> 00:29:08,338 -So, it's not quite a medieval village. 533 00:29:08,338 --> 00:29:09,471 -Mm-hmm. 534 00:29:09,471 --> 00:29:11,405 -We're getting this, so, 535 00:29:11,405 --> 00:29:12,505 we have -- -Is that slate, or...? 536 00:29:12,505 --> 00:29:13,871 -That's slate, so that's -- -Yeah. 537 00:29:13,871 --> 00:29:15,405 -that's like roof slate. 538 00:29:15,405 --> 00:29:20,171 And we're also getting a lot of this, so, sort of plaster. 539 00:29:20,171 --> 00:29:22,305 Really quite nice plaster. -That's recent, isn't it? 540 00:29:22,305 --> 00:29:23,605 -Yes. -Yeah, yeah. 541 00:29:23,605 --> 00:29:26,071 -It's very recent and there's an awful lot of it. 542 00:29:26,071 --> 00:29:29,571 -Does this look like a sort of dumping ground, then, for stuff? 543 00:29:29,571 --> 00:29:31,838 -Basically, we pretty much have an entire house here. 544 00:29:31,838 --> 00:29:35,005 We've got floor, we got walls, we got roof tiles. 545 00:29:35,005 --> 00:29:36,071 -Yeah. 546 00:29:37,238 --> 00:29:38,638 I just can't believe they'd dump stuff 547 00:29:38,638 --> 00:29:40,571 in somewhere so beautiful, that's the thing. 548 00:29:42,471 --> 00:29:44,038 -So I'm just hoping that -- 549 00:29:44,038 --> 00:29:46,205 that it is on top of something else, 550 00:29:46,205 --> 00:29:48,071 that it isn't all the entire landscape 551 00:29:48,071 --> 00:29:50,271 is just [ Laughing ] modern... -God, yeah, 552 00:29:50,271 --> 00:29:52,038 that would be very upsetting. -...building rubble. 553 00:29:52,038 --> 00:29:54,038 [ Suspenseful music plays ] 554 00:29:54,038 --> 00:29:59,671 ♪♪ 555 00:29:59,671 --> 00:30:01,738 -But Mark's detective work suggests 556 00:30:01,738 --> 00:30:04,071 there could be a lot more rubble to come. 557 00:30:06,638 --> 00:30:09,005 -This whole place looks timeless, 558 00:30:09,005 --> 00:30:13,071 but actually isn't as old as it seems. 559 00:30:13,071 --> 00:30:14,638 Because, over the centuries, 560 00:30:14,638 --> 00:30:17,605 the Spencers transformed their buildings 561 00:30:17,605 --> 00:30:21,171 and their landscape to just keep up with the fashions. 562 00:30:23,771 --> 00:30:28,571 -This painting shows the house round 1700. 563 00:30:28,571 --> 00:30:32,538 What we see now is completely different. 564 00:30:32,538 --> 00:30:34,371 Stone dressings and brick 565 00:30:34,371 --> 00:30:38,538 and these gorgeous, early sash windows. 566 00:30:38,538 --> 00:30:41,871 Actually, looking a lot nicer than the present house. 567 00:30:44,938 --> 00:30:47,805 This process of transforming the house 568 00:30:47,805 --> 00:30:51,805 and the landscape creates stuff  -- 569 00:30:51,805 --> 00:30:53,771 building material, rubble. 570 00:30:55,805 --> 00:30:57,338 And I just wonder 571 00:30:57,338 --> 00:31:00,238 whether all those humps and bumps up on the hill 572 00:31:00,238 --> 00:31:02,405 that the family have always believed 573 00:31:02,405 --> 00:31:06,171 to be the site of original medieval village 574 00:31:06,171 --> 00:31:09,271 are actually dumps of their own rubbish. 575 00:31:09,271 --> 00:31:14,238 ♪♪ 576 00:31:14,238 --> 00:31:16,205 And that kind of makes me a bit worried 577 00:31:16,205 --> 00:31:18,438 [ Laughing ] that maybe we're actually digging 578 00:31:18,438 --> 00:31:20,371 in completely the wrong place. 579 00:31:20,371 --> 00:31:24,838 ♪♪ 580 00:31:24,838 --> 00:31:27,005 [ Thunder rumbles ] 581 00:31:31,205 --> 00:31:33,205 [ Tender tune plays ] 582 00:31:33,205 --> 00:31:43,905 ♪♪ 583 00:31:43,905 --> 00:31:46,238 -After more than a week of digging, 584 00:31:46,238 --> 00:31:47,705 it's not looking good. 585 00:31:47,705 --> 00:31:54,805 ♪♪ 586 00:31:54,805 --> 00:31:59,405 So far, the only Anglo-Saxons at Althorp are the reenactors. 587 00:32:01,305 --> 00:32:04,638 And, with no archaeological signs from the period, 588 00:32:04,638 --> 00:32:05,738 they're moving on. 589 00:32:08,738 --> 00:32:11,205 Cat's team has painstakingly removed 590 00:32:11,205 --> 00:32:13,771 a line of compacted rubble, 591 00:32:13,771 --> 00:32:15,905 which initially looked like part of a wall. 592 00:32:17,538 --> 00:32:21,738 But what lies beneath does not belong to the lost village 593 00:32:21,738 --> 00:32:24,505 and dates to a much more recent era. 594 00:32:24,505 --> 00:32:26,805 -Oh, no. [ Laughs ] 595 00:32:26,805 --> 00:32:29,771 -Yeah, it's pretty bad news from this trench. 596 00:32:29,771 --> 00:32:30,905 -[ Laughs ] 597 00:32:32,705 --> 00:32:33,771 -Yeah. 598 00:32:36,105 --> 00:32:37,905 -Okay. -Yeah. 599 00:32:39,205 --> 00:32:42,105 -Yeah, I think we can't really, um -- 600 00:32:42,105 --> 00:32:44,871 we can't really pretend that's anything else... 601 00:32:44,871 --> 00:32:46,405 -Yeah. -...than a pipe. 602 00:32:46,405 --> 00:32:48,371 -Lovely PVC black plastic. 603 00:32:48,605 --> 00:32:50,171 [ Laughter ] 604 00:32:52,838 --> 00:32:53,838 -Okay, well -- 605 00:32:55,605 --> 00:32:58,805 [ Laughter ] 606 00:33:05,105 --> 00:33:07,571 I think we can stop now. -Yeah. 607 00:33:13,705 --> 00:33:17,305 [ Owl hooting ] 608 00:33:17,305 --> 00:33:18,371 [ Creature croaks ] 609 00:33:18,371 --> 00:33:20,371 [ Suspenseful music plays ] 610 00:33:20,371 --> 00:33:23,505 ♪♪ 611 00:33:23,505 --> 00:33:26,505 -The archaeologists are not giving up. 612 00:33:30,171 --> 00:33:32,405 Away from areas where they found rubble 613 00:33:32,405 --> 00:33:34,038 and modern plumbing, 614 00:33:34,038 --> 00:33:36,405 their geophysical survey has revealed 615 00:33:36,405 --> 00:33:39,171 magnetic disturbances under the soil 616 00:33:39,171 --> 00:33:41,338 which form mysterious shapes... 617 00:33:43,238 --> 00:33:46,838 ...including a long, well-defined strip, 618 00:33:46,838 --> 00:33:48,771 which Cat wants to investigate. 619 00:33:48,771 --> 00:33:55,271 ♪♪ 620 00:33:55,271 --> 00:33:57,705 -It looks really nice and straight, it's really clear. 621 00:33:57,705 --> 00:33:59,471 It's running right up this hill, 622 00:33:59,471 --> 00:34:03,438 so, it could be some kind of a road or a pathway. 623 00:34:04,838 --> 00:34:06,738 Roads are actually really, really interesting to find. 624 00:34:06,738 --> 00:34:08,938 If people lose stuff or they drop coins 625 00:34:08,938 --> 00:34:11,305 and things fall off their clothes, 626 00:34:11,305 --> 00:34:13,071 something that tells us something 627 00:34:13,071 --> 00:34:15,871 about exactly who traveled up and down that road. 628 00:34:15,871 --> 00:34:21,271 ♪♪ 629 00:34:21,271 --> 00:34:23,238 -But, as they slice downwards, 630 00:34:23,238 --> 00:34:27,605 there are few signs of past travelers. 631 00:34:27,605 --> 00:34:30,438 -So, they've been digging here for a few days 632 00:34:30,438 --> 00:34:34,105 and, as you can see, there's not -- there's not a lot. 633 00:34:34,105 --> 00:34:36,471 -No, no, nothing at all or -- 634 00:34:36,471 --> 00:34:38,571 Have you found anything? 635 00:34:38,571 --> 00:34:40,271 -We had this button come up... 636 00:34:40,271 --> 00:34:41,505 -Oh, yes? -...with some possible 637 00:34:41,505 --> 00:34:44,005 gold gilt on it, or something to that effect. 638 00:34:44,005 --> 00:34:46,438 A button lost off someone's coat jacket. 639 00:34:46,438 --> 00:34:48,038 -Yeah, someone riding by. 640 00:34:48,038 --> 00:34:50,205 -This could be one of your grandparents 641 00:34:50,205 --> 00:34:52,705 or great-grandparents lost a button. 642 00:34:52,705 --> 00:34:54,538 -Yes. Very good, Well, it's a start. 643 00:34:54,538 --> 00:34:56,471 Let's find the rest of the coat. -Yeah. 644 00:34:56,471 --> 00:34:57,871 [ Laughter ] 645 00:35:02,005 --> 00:35:04,505 -I'm not convinced that this is going to be the road 646 00:35:04,505 --> 00:35:07,005 that I was hoping it would be. -No. 647 00:35:07,005 --> 00:35:09,805 -At the moment, my feeling is it looks quite natural, 648 00:35:09,805 --> 00:35:12,338 just a geological feature because -- 649 00:35:12,338 --> 00:35:15,238 -But it's very obvious, very linear, 650 00:35:15,238 --> 00:35:16,438 as a geological feature. 651 00:35:16,438 --> 00:35:19,905 -Yeah, but they do happen. 652 00:35:19,905 --> 00:35:23,038 -I have high hopes that this might turn into something. 653 00:35:23,038 --> 00:35:25,305 -Have you? -We'll see. 654 00:35:25,305 --> 00:35:27,271 -[ Laughs ] You'll buy me a drink if it does! 655 00:35:27,271 --> 00:35:29,171 -Okay, I will. I promise. 656 00:35:29,171 --> 00:35:33,971 ♪♪ 657 00:35:33,971 --> 00:35:37,505 -As they continue investigating the puzzling feature... 658 00:35:37,505 --> 00:35:39,438 ♪♪ 659 00:35:39,438 --> 00:35:41,805 ...Cat decides to begin excavating 660 00:35:41,805 --> 00:35:44,105 a second unusual shape... 661 00:35:44,105 --> 00:35:47,771 ♪♪ 662 00:35:47,771 --> 00:35:50,771 ...which takes the form of two circles, 663 00:35:50,771 --> 00:35:53,405 one inside the other. 664 00:35:55,271 --> 00:35:56,671 -Wait. So it's 9 meters there, 665 00:35:56,671 --> 00:35:58,338 so it's actually 20 meters across if it's a circle. 666 00:35:58,338 --> 00:36:00,538 -Well, a bit less, yeah. 667 00:36:00,538 --> 00:36:02,005 -That makes it... 668 00:36:02,005 --> 00:36:03,371 -Huge. -Really huge. 669 00:36:03,371 --> 00:36:05,905 -Yeah. -I don't know what it would be, 670 00:36:05,905 --> 00:36:08,905 though, if this is a medieval village, 671 00:36:08,905 --> 00:36:11,071 because you don't really get circular features like that 672 00:36:11,071 --> 00:36:12,938 and buildings aren't circular. 673 00:36:12,938 --> 00:36:14,438 And that over there... 674 00:36:14,438 --> 00:36:16,638 -This should be the middle. -...is in the middle. 675 00:36:16,638 --> 00:36:18,505 -Here. -Yeah, so that's sort of 676 00:36:18,505 --> 00:36:20,905 the size of the circle that we're looking at. 677 00:36:20,905 --> 00:36:22,205 It's like a henge! 678 00:36:22,205 --> 00:36:24,171 -I'd love to find a henge! That would be so cool! 679 00:36:24,171 --> 00:36:26,271 -Althorp Henge! -[ Laughs ] 680 00:36:35,205 --> 00:36:39,138 -Just beneath the topsoil, the area inside the circles 681 00:36:39,138 --> 00:36:43,305 begins to yield fragments of manmade artifacts... 682 00:36:43,305 --> 00:36:45,571 [ Indistinct conversations ] 683 00:36:45,571 --> 00:36:46,771 -What have you got? 684 00:36:46,771 --> 00:36:48,338 -Ooh, ooh! -They're modern, but -- 685 00:36:48,338 --> 00:36:50,305 -No, they're not. No, they're not! 686 00:36:50,305 --> 00:36:51,438 No, they're not! 687 00:36:51,438 --> 00:36:52,805 -What's this, then? Ooh! 688 00:36:52,805 --> 00:36:54,805 -Ooh! No, they're not. 689 00:36:54,805 --> 00:36:57,638 -What is that? -They're not modern at all. 690 00:36:57,638 --> 00:36:59,305 That's stoneware. 691 00:36:59,305 --> 00:37:01,005 -Is it? -Yeah. 692 00:37:01,005 --> 00:37:03,271 Oh, it's nice. It's beautiful. 693 00:37:03,271 --> 00:37:05,371 Date? -17th century. 694 00:37:05,371 --> 00:37:06,771 -Is it?! -Yup. 695 00:37:06,771 --> 00:37:09,905 -That's really nice. -1680, 1720-ish. 696 00:37:09,905 --> 00:37:12,238 -Is it really? -Yeah, yeah. 697 00:37:12,238 --> 00:37:15,271 -Excellent. That's the best of what we've had so far. 698 00:37:15,271 --> 00:37:16,405 -Isn't that lovely? 699 00:37:16,405 --> 00:37:18,071 -And it's literally just in the topsoil. 700 00:37:18,071 --> 00:37:19,238 -Yes. Isn't that lovely? 701 00:37:19,238 --> 00:37:21,538 -So, actually now we are getting closer 702 00:37:21,538 --> 00:37:25,238 towards the beginning of the Spencers' time on the estate. 703 00:37:25,238 --> 00:37:28,138 -Reign. That's right. Yup. 704 00:37:28,138 --> 00:37:30,371 -Excellent. -That's really a nice find. 705 00:37:32,205 --> 00:37:36,171 -A few inches further down, signs of human settlement 706 00:37:36,171 --> 00:37:42,571 begin to emerge in the shape of tiny pieces of charcoal. 707 00:37:42,571 --> 00:37:44,405 -There's more. -Yeah, there's one there 708 00:37:44,405 --> 00:37:47,405 and there's a bigger one there. -That one's really big isn't it? 709 00:37:47,405 --> 00:37:49,138 That's really good. Charcoal is always 710 00:37:49,138 --> 00:37:51,838 going to be evidence of human activity. 711 00:37:51,838 --> 00:37:53,638 -Yeah. 712 00:37:53,638 --> 00:37:56,205 -Finally! 713 00:37:56,205 --> 00:37:58,738 -Like, that was quite difficult for me to break. 714 00:37:58,738 --> 00:38:01,038 -So, there are some really big lumps coming out. 715 00:38:01,038 --> 00:38:05,371 -So hopefully that's showing some human occupation. 716 00:38:05,371 --> 00:38:07,438 -Are you sure this definitely charcoal? 717 00:38:07,438 --> 00:38:09,771 -Yeah. It's this one I'm not sure about. 718 00:38:09,771 --> 00:38:12,405 -That's not charcoal. -I just snapped that. Yeah. 719 00:38:14,171 --> 00:38:16,605 -You know, that might actually be pottery. 720 00:38:16,605 --> 00:38:19,771 -Oh... [ Laughter ] 721 00:38:19,771 --> 00:38:22,105 -That's the other half. [ Laughs ] 722 00:38:22,105 --> 00:38:24,338 Oh, dear! 723 00:38:24,338 --> 00:38:27,938 -The inside of it looks very pottery-like to me. 724 00:38:27,938 --> 00:38:32,305 And if it is, then this is something quite early. 725 00:38:32,305 --> 00:38:35,238 It's possible it could be Iron Age. 726 00:38:35,238 --> 00:38:39,605 ♪♪ 727 00:38:39,605 --> 00:38:42,338 -I think what we're seeing is really that Althorp 728 00:38:42,338 --> 00:38:45,938 could well be a really very old landscape. 729 00:38:45,938 --> 00:38:48,938 ♪♪ 730 00:38:48,938 --> 00:38:51,738 At the moment, I'm really leaning towards thinking 731 00:38:51,738 --> 00:38:55,471 that this might be an Iron Age roundhouse. 732 00:38:55,471 --> 00:38:58,338 ♪♪ 733 00:38:58,338 --> 00:39:01,405 It's got the right shape, it's got the right size, 734 00:39:01,405 --> 00:39:04,205 and it's got the right type of finds coming out of it. 735 00:39:04,205 --> 00:39:08,771 ♪♪ 736 00:39:08,771 --> 00:39:12,671 -Could the archaeologists have entered the Iron Age, 737 00:39:12,671 --> 00:39:16,538 a period of British history that lasted 800 years? 738 00:39:18,038 --> 00:39:20,538 People were beginning to live in settled communities 739 00:39:20,538 --> 00:39:23,671 made up of distinctive, circular buildings. 740 00:39:23,671 --> 00:39:28,638 ♪♪ 741 00:39:28,638 --> 00:39:31,105 -So, what I'm really hoping for, 742 00:39:31,105 --> 00:39:34,671 if you can help me find, is a roundhouse. 743 00:39:34,671 --> 00:39:37,538 -Cool. Excellent. -We've got a few days left... 744 00:39:37,538 --> 00:39:40,905 and see if we can dig up something quite spectacular. 745 00:39:40,905 --> 00:39:42,771 -Come on! -Yay! 746 00:39:42,771 --> 00:39:44,771 [ Laughter ] 747 00:39:44,771 --> 00:39:46,505 ♪♪ 748 00:39:46,505 --> 00:39:50,538 -It's not the lost village they've been searching for, 749 00:39:50,538 --> 00:39:53,938 but this hint of far older archaeological evidence 750 00:39:53,938 --> 00:39:56,605 brings everyone to the trenches. 751 00:39:56,605 --> 00:39:58,238 [ Indistinct conversations ] 752 00:39:58,238 --> 00:40:02,038 -So, hopefully, if this is part of a house, 753 00:40:02,038 --> 00:40:04,605 we could be starting to come down to a floor surface. 754 00:40:04,605 --> 00:40:07,638 -I see. 755 00:40:07,638 --> 00:40:09,671 It's lovely to have the roundhouse, 756 00:40:09,671 --> 00:40:13,205 if we do, in the park here, because it goes so far back 757 00:40:13,205 --> 00:40:15,205 and it puts everything in context. 758 00:40:15,205 --> 00:40:17,271 You know, I sometimes think, "Oh, we've been here 500 years." 759 00:40:17,271 --> 00:40:18,705 Well, when you see something like this, 760 00:40:18,705 --> 00:40:19,938 it's not very long, is it? 761 00:40:19,938 --> 00:40:22,938 -No. Absolutely. -No. 762 00:40:22,938 --> 00:40:25,538 -So it's interesting 'cause your eyes play tricks, don't they? 763 00:40:25,538 --> 00:40:27,771 You think, "Oh, I've just found something remarkable," 764 00:40:27,771 --> 00:40:29,971 and then it disappears in the next scrape, doesn't it? 765 00:40:29,971 --> 00:40:31,038 -Yeah. Exactly. [ Laughs ] 766 00:40:31,038 --> 00:40:32,605 -It gets quite exciting, 767 00:40:32,605 --> 00:40:34,538 and then you suddenly realize it's nothing. 768 00:40:34,538 --> 00:40:36,471 -Yeah. 769 00:40:36,471 --> 00:40:40,471 What's that? -Don't know. 770 00:40:40,471 --> 00:40:42,738 -Could well be a piece of pottery actually. 771 00:40:42,738 --> 00:40:43,838 That's a piece of pottery. 772 00:40:43,838 --> 00:40:45,771 -Hooray. My first piece of pottery. 773 00:40:45,771 --> 00:40:46,971 -Yay! Well done. 774 00:40:46,971 --> 00:40:49,805 -I don't want to be competitive, but... 775 00:40:49,805 --> 00:40:52,371 I haven't seen you get one recently, Lily. 776 00:40:52,371 --> 00:40:54,071 [ Laughter ] 777 00:40:54,071 --> 00:40:55,905 -Yeah, you're doing pretty well. 778 00:40:55,905 --> 00:40:58,871 [ Laughs ] 779 00:40:58,871 --> 00:41:02,371 -They're finding plenty of fragments of Iron Age pottery... 780 00:41:02,371 --> 00:41:05,971 ♪♪ 781 00:41:05,971 --> 00:41:08,405 ...but locating physical remains of a building 782 00:41:08,405 --> 00:41:11,171 from the period is much more difficult. 783 00:41:11,171 --> 00:41:13,205 ♪♪ 784 00:41:13,205 --> 00:41:16,538 No Iron Age roundhouses still stand in Britain. 785 00:41:16,538 --> 00:41:19,605 ♪♪ 786 00:41:19,605 --> 00:41:21,771 But there is a place where Cat can experience 787 00:41:21,771 --> 00:41:23,905 what they might have been like. 788 00:41:23,905 --> 00:41:28,305 ♪♪ 789 00:41:28,305 --> 00:41:30,205 At Butser in Hampshire, 790 00:41:30,205 --> 00:41:32,671 these roundhouses have been reconstructed 791 00:41:32,671 --> 00:41:36,671 according to archaeological footprints found in the soil. 792 00:41:36,671 --> 00:41:43,038 ♪♪ 793 00:41:43,038 --> 00:41:45,005 -So, this is a big building. It's one of the biggest 794 00:41:45,005 --> 00:41:46,971 that have been found in the Iron Age. 795 00:41:46,971 --> 00:41:50,171 It's about 15 meters, or 50 feet, across. 796 00:41:50,171 --> 00:41:53,438 And it's around about 9, 9.5 meters high, 797 00:41:53,438 --> 00:41:55,005 which is about 30 feet. 798 00:41:55,005 --> 00:41:57,238 -That's really quite impressive, isn't it? 799 00:41:57,238 --> 00:41:59,071 -It is. -I'm just trying to think of 800 00:41:59,071 --> 00:42:01,938 how I would see this in the ground. 801 00:42:01,938 --> 00:42:05,705 And, actually, there's not very much that isn't organic. 802 00:42:05,705 --> 00:42:07,471 So, you've got the wood and the thatch 803 00:42:07,471 --> 00:42:09,371 and, yeah, just the timbers, really, 804 00:42:09,371 --> 00:42:10,638 but there's actually not -- 805 00:42:10,638 --> 00:42:12,238 There's no metal, is there, at all? 806 00:42:12,238 --> 00:42:15,105 -No, I don't believe there's ever been a single nail 807 00:42:15,105 --> 00:42:16,871 found in the British Iron Age. 808 00:42:16,871 --> 00:42:18,838 So all of this house is -- As you say, 809 00:42:18,838 --> 00:42:21,271 it's put together with organic materials. 810 00:42:21,271 --> 00:42:24,471 Very simple joints lashed with rope. 811 00:42:24,471 --> 00:42:26,871 You'll probably see some little post holes, 812 00:42:26,871 --> 00:42:29,271 so there'll just be stones in the ground. 813 00:42:29,271 --> 00:42:31,571 That'll tell you where the upright stakes 814 00:42:31,571 --> 00:42:34,971 that have helped to support the walls, where they go. 815 00:42:34,971 --> 00:42:36,305 This is a big one, 816 00:42:36,305 --> 00:42:39,171 but 6 to 8 meters is really the typical size. 817 00:42:39,171 --> 00:42:42,905 That's the most common size you find in Iron Age roundhouses. 818 00:42:42,905 --> 00:42:44,805 -Well, that's good news because the shape 819 00:42:44,805 --> 00:42:46,371 that I've got is about that size, 820 00:42:46,371 --> 00:42:49,671 so that's good news to me definitely. 821 00:42:49,671 --> 00:42:52,405 -It does sound like a roundhouse. 822 00:42:52,405 --> 00:42:56,805 What you're finding is this sort of -- this poor ghost 823 00:42:56,805 --> 00:43:01,105 of what I think was a much richer culture. 824 00:43:01,105 --> 00:43:05,671 The Iron Age didn't just vanish. It's stayed with us. 825 00:43:05,671 --> 00:43:08,305 Welsh language, Irish language, Scots language -- 826 00:43:08,305 --> 00:43:10,805 a lot of that is almost certainly based 827 00:43:10,805 --> 00:43:12,505 on the language that was spoken, 828 00:43:12,505 --> 00:43:14,671 or the languages that were spoken, 829 00:43:14,671 --> 00:43:17,205 in the Iron Age in Britain. 830 00:43:17,205 --> 00:43:18,971 So it's a rich culture 831 00:43:18,971 --> 00:43:22,038 that's actually very important to Britain and Ireland. 832 00:43:22,038 --> 00:43:24,905 ♪♪ 833 00:43:24,905 --> 00:43:27,571 -I could definitely imagine one or several of these 834 00:43:27,571 --> 00:43:31,238 right up there on the top of the hill in Althorp. 835 00:43:31,238 --> 00:43:33,271 They would just blend into the landscape. 836 00:43:33,271 --> 00:43:36,538 I quite like the idea of that really. 837 00:43:36,538 --> 00:43:38,971 One, two, three. 838 00:43:38,971 --> 00:43:42,638 ♪♪ 839 00:43:42,638 --> 00:43:45,171 Yeah, so, this is about 7 meters or so, 840 00:43:45,171 --> 00:43:48,505 which is just perfect. 841 00:43:48,505 --> 00:43:50,338 If you imagine all of that rotting away, 842 00:43:50,338 --> 00:43:52,805 then there's just nothing left in the ground to find, 843 00:43:52,805 --> 00:43:55,205 apart from the shadow of it. 844 00:43:55,205 --> 00:44:05,338 ♪♪ 845 00:44:05,338 --> 00:44:07,671 -And, over the next few days, 846 00:44:07,671 --> 00:44:10,571 a shadow begins to emerge at Althorp. 847 00:44:10,571 --> 00:44:13,238 ♪♪ 848 00:44:13,238 --> 00:44:17,505 -Looking at it from here, maybe this is wishful thinking, 849 00:44:17,505 --> 00:44:23,205 but we've actually got a series of darker round patches. 850 00:44:23,205 --> 00:44:25,205 Do they look sort of post-holey? 851 00:44:25,205 --> 00:44:27,505 ♪♪ 852 00:44:27,505 --> 00:44:30,071 -So, have we found our roundhouse? 853 00:44:30,071 --> 00:44:31,705 [ Laughter ] 854 00:44:31,705 --> 00:44:32,938 -I don't know if I'm wishing too hard. 855 00:44:32,938 --> 00:44:35,605 I feel a bit sick, it's so exciting! 856 00:44:35,605 --> 00:44:37,438 [ Laughter ] 857 00:44:37,438 --> 00:44:39,071 [ Tools scraping ] 858 00:44:39,071 --> 00:44:41,505 [ Indistinct conversations ] 859 00:44:41,505 --> 00:44:46,371 ♪♪ 860 00:44:46,371 --> 00:44:48,138 -Can you see the dark patch? -Yeah! 861 00:44:48,138 --> 00:44:50,271 -So, I mean, it's the right size. 862 00:44:50,271 --> 00:44:51,638 Right size, right shape. 863 00:44:51,638 --> 00:44:53,405 We've got the right type of pottery. 864 00:44:53,405 --> 00:44:57,538 It's doing exactly what I would expect it to do. 865 00:44:57,538 --> 00:44:59,205 And it's curving down. -Yes. 866 00:44:59,205 --> 00:45:02,105 -And that's perfect because -- -How does it fit in? 867 00:45:02,105 --> 00:45:06,438 -It fits in absolutely beautifully with the geophysics. 868 00:45:06,438 --> 00:45:08,838 This is where we are. -Just in that bit there? 869 00:45:08,838 --> 00:45:09,905 -Just in the edge there. 870 00:45:09,905 --> 00:45:12,238 And it clearly continues... 871 00:45:12,238 --> 00:45:14,405 -Back to about here... 872 00:45:14,405 --> 00:45:17,205 -Definitely to about here. -Yeah. 873 00:45:17,205 --> 00:45:20,171 -It's clearly some kind of a wall or a ditch or something. 874 00:45:20,171 --> 00:45:22,905 And then you've got a roundhouse in the middle. 875 00:45:22,905 --> 00:45:26,871 -Absolutely classic. Late Iron Age. 876 00:45:26,871 --> 00:45:28,205 -Yeah, it's perfect. It's perfect. 877 00:45:28,205 --> 00:45:31,405 -You know, roundhouse in a stock enclosure. 878 00:45:31,405 --> 00:45:33,471 -I can't see anything else it could be. 879 00:45:33,471 --> 00:45:51,238 ♪♪ 880 00:45:51,238 --> 00:45:54,571 -I love history, and to think of this landscape 881 00:45:54,571 --> 00:45:56,805 that I considered I knew so well 882 00:45:56,805 --> 00:46:01,005 having a completely different pre-life, 883 00:46:01,005 --> 00:46:02,738 that -- that's fantastic. 884 00:46:02,738 --> 00:46:06,838 ♪♪ 885 00:46:06,838 --> 00:46:09,171 Until the age of 11, Althorp was just somewhere 886 00:46:09,171 --> 00:46:11,105 I came to occasionally with my family 887 00:46:11,105 --> 00:46:13,205 because my grandfather lived here. 888 00:46:13,205 --> 00:46:17,138 And it was an austere and rather oppressive place. 889 00:46:17,138 --> 00:46:19,638 ♪♪ 890 00:46:19,638 --> 00:46:21,405 It was only later that I realized 891 00:46:21,405 --> 00:46:27,271 that this was a repository, I guess, where history was. 892 00:46:27,271 --> 00:46:30,505 But, also, such a beautiful setting. 893 00:46:30,505 --> 00:46:33,338 The parkland is what it's all about to me. 894 00:46:33,338 --> 00:46:36,605 Every time I drive into the park through the gates, 895 00:46:36,605 --> 00:46:39,638 I feel as though I'm going back into a different century. 896 00:46:39,638 --> 00:46:43,171 ♪♪ 897 00:46:43,171 --> 00:46:46,171 I take my role here as one as a custodian, really. 898 00:46:46,171 --> 00:46:49,605 And what else am I looking after without knowing it? 899 00:46:49,605 --> 00:46:51,371 What's under this soil 900 00:46:51,371 --> 00:46:54,238 that we've looked after for centuries? 901 00:46:54,238 --> 00:46:58,305 ♪♪ 902 00:46:58,305 --> 00:47:02,671 -The Iron Age roundhouse could be up to 3,000 years old. 903 00:47:02,671 --> 00:47:08,205 ♪♪ 904 00:47:08,205 --> 00:47:11,871 But Althorp hasn't finished giving up its ancient secrets. 905 00:47:11,871 --> 00:47:15,138 ♪♪ 906 00:47:15,138 --> 00:47:17,238 Just a few steps away, 907 00:47:17,238 --> 00:47:20,805 in the spot where they thought there might be a buried road, 908 00:47:20,805 --> 00:47:25,305 the archaeologists are finding signs of massive earthworks. 909 00:47:25,305 --> 00:47:28,738 ♪♪ 910 00:47:28,738 --> 00:47:32,138 -So, we've definitely got a ditch-like feature, haven't we? 911 00:47:32,138 --> 00:47:34,371 -Yeah, that's increasingly what it looks like. 912 00:47:34,371 --> 00:47:36,838 It looks this has been cut through, 913 00:47:36,838 --> 00:47:39,238 and this material in here has filled it up. 914 00:47:39,238 --> 00:47:42,071 So quite a major bit of engineering. 915 00:47:42,071 --> 00:47:45,171 -Absolutely. It's going to be a big thing. 916 00:47:45,171 --> 00:47:46,638 I mean, this is really exciting! 917 00:47:46,638 --> 00:47:50,771 Massive great big feature, tying in with the geophysics, 918 00:47:50,771 --> 00:47:53,705 going exactly where we want it to go. 919 00:47:53,705 --> 00:47:54,971 -Yeah. Perfect. It's really -- 920 00:47:54,971 --> 00:47:57,438 -I know. It's the key. 921 00:47:57,438 --> 00:47:59,271 -The key to what, though? -Ah! 922 00:47:59,271 --> 00:48:02,571 [ Laughs ] 923 00:48:02,571 --> 00:48:05,071 In that cubic meterage of soil, 924 00:48:05,071 --> 00:48:08,371 there will be a find that will give us a date for it. 925 00:48:08,371 --> 00:48:10,605 ♪♪ 926 00:48:10,605 --> 00:48:13,371 -If this isan ancient ditch, 927 00:48:13,371 --> 00:48:16,405 they need to find manmade artifacts to understand 928 00:48:16,405 --> 00:48:19,971 who dug it, when, and why. 929 00:48:19,971 --> 00:48:22,038 ♪♪ 930 00:48:22,038 --> 00:48:24,838 -Peta, do you think we're at the bottom there? 931 00:48:24,838 --> 00:48:27,638 -That would be really nice if it was the bottom. 932 00:48:27,638 --> 00:48:30,838 If this isn't a deep-enough ditch, I don't know what is. 933 00:48:30,838 --> 00:48:36,705 ♪♪ 934 00:48:36,705 --> 00:48:38,638 -They search the bottom layer of earth 935 00:48:38,638 --> 00:48:40,571 for artifacts they can date... 936 00:48:40,571 --> 00:48:44,105 ♪♪ 937 00:48:44,105 --> 00:48:46,371 ...and attempt to trace how far the ditch 938 00:48:46,371 --> 00:48:48,971 once stretched across the landscape. 939 00:48:48,971 --> 00:48:53,871 ♪♪ 940 00:48:53,871 --> 00:48:55,138 -Look at that! -Oh, goodness. 941 00:48:55,138 --> 00:48:56,871 -There it is. -It's the same feature then. 942 00:48:56,871 --> 00:48:59,638 -It's good, isn't it? -And look how it's curving! 943 00:48:59,638 --> 00:49:04,238 -It cannot possibly be natural, because it goes up the hill. 944 00:49:04,238 --> 00:49:05,738 It's perfect! 945 00:49:05,738 --> 00:49:08,971 -This is a massive great big ditch, 946 00:49:08,971 --> 00:49:11,338 marching across the landscape. 947 00:49:11,338 --> 00:49:18,105 ♪♪ 948 00:49:18,105 --> 00:49:20,638 -As their dig draws to a close, 949 00:49:20,638 --> 00:49:22,971 the archaeologists have uncovered something 950 00:49:22,971 --> 00:49:26,071 no one expected to find at Althorp. 951 00:49:26,071 --> 00:49:31,738 ♪♪ 952 00:49:31,738 --> 00:49:34,071 -As you can see, we've gone down quite far. 953 00:49:34,071 --> 00:49:35,571 Mark is just digging this one. 954 00:49:35,571 --> 00:49:37,405 -Oh, my God. What's going on here? 955 00:49:37,405 --> 00:49:39,271 -[ Laughs ] -Looks like a crime scene. 956 00:49:39,271 --> 00:49:41,071 -Yeah. [ Laughs ] 957 00:49:41,071 --> 00:49:44,638 -It's got deeper and deeper and deeper. 958 00:49:44,638 --> 00:49:46,271 -And? What is it? -Well... 959 00:49:46,271 --> 00:49:48,871 [ Laughter ] 960 00:49:48,871 --> 00:49:50,971 So, what we're finding in it... 961 00:49:56,538 --> 00:49:58,838 ...is lots of this. 962 00:49:58,838 --> 00:50:01,671 -Oh, wow. Flint. -Lots and lots of flint. 963 00:50:01,671 --> 00:50:05,671 Now, this is basically raw material for making stone tools. 964 00:50:05,671 --> 00:50:08,471 -Oh, how extraordinary! -And this is the rubbish. 965 00:50:08,471 --> 00:50:10,171 -That they didn't -- didn't make the cut, as it were. 966 00:50:10,171 --> 00:50:13,038 -Yeah, it didn't make the cut. 967 00:50:13,038 --> 00:50:15,105 -This is half of a scraper. 968 00:50:15,105 --> 00:50:16,338 -Oh, wow! 969 00:50:16,338 --> 00:50:19,205 -So, you can see that really nice edge to it. 970 00:50:19,205 --> 00:50:21,271 You can see where the smaller little chips 971 00:50:21,271 --> 00:50:22,671 have been taken off it. -Yes. Yes. 972 00:50:22,671 --> 00:50:24,905 -Enough to make it into that shape. 973 00:50:24,905 --> 00:50:27,338 And actually you can hold it. It's got a little sort of... 974 00:50:27,338 --> 00:50:28,838 -Oh, it's got -- Yes! 975 00:50:28,838 --> 00:50:30,438 -Can you feel it? -Yeah. [ Chuckles ] 976 00:50:30,438 --> 00:50:32,205 -And then you'd use that to scrape things, 977 00:50:32,205 --> 00:50:33,671 to scrape, you know, animal skins 978 00:50:33,671 --> 00:50:35,171 or something like that. -Yes. 979 00:50:35,171 --> 00:50:39,038 So that gives us a rough period, which is Neolithic. 980 00:50:39,038 --> 00:50:41,571 -So give me -- What's the time on that? Neolithic? 981 00:50:41,571 --> 00:50:44,171 -Well, that's 6,000 years old. -Oh, my goodness. 982 00:50:44,171 --> 00:50:46,671 -So these are the first farmers. -Yes. 983 00:50:46,671 --> 00:50:48,905 -First farmers are coming into this part of the world 984 00:50:48,905 --> 00:50:50,871 4,000 BC. 985 00:50:50,871 --> 00:50:54,771 ♪♪ 986 00:50:54,771 --> 00:50:57,638 -In their search for a lost medieval village, 987 00:50:57,638 --> 00:50:59,471 the archaeologists hoped to find 988 00:50:59,471 --> 00:51:04,338 a thousand years of British history. 989 00:51:04,338 --> 00:51:07,238 Now the ditch carries Althorp's story 990 00:51:07,238 --> 00:51:09,638 back to the New Stone Age... 991 00:51:09,638 --> 00:51:12,771 which began 6,000 years ago. 992 00:51:12,771 --> 00:51:16,038 ♪♪ 993 00:51:16,038 --> 00:51:17,538 -It's incredible, isn't it? 994 00:51:17,538 --> 00:51:20,438 So that is eleven times longer than my family have lived here. 995 00:51:20,438 --> 00:51:21,771 -Just  996 00:51:20,438 --> 00:51:21,771 eleven times longer. 997 00:51:21,771 --> 00:51:23,705 -[ Laughter ] -How amazing. 998 00:51:23,705 --> 00:51:25,738 And, so, how far would you imagine 999 00:51:25,738 --> 00:51:27,738 this goes in every direction? 1000 00:51:27,738 --> 00:51:31,238 -Well, in our geo-phys, we've got 150 meters. 1001 00:51:31,238 --> 00:51:33,705 -Goodness. -But I suspect -- 1002 00:51:33,705 --> 00:51:36,171 If we did the geophysics 1003 00:51:36,171 --> 00:51:37,671 of the whole park... -Yeah 1004 00:51:37,671 --> 00:51:41,438 -...we would find literally kilometers of this ditch work. 1005 00:51:41,438 --> 00:51:46,171 You know, this could be a massive Neolithic monument. 1006 00:51:46,171 --> 00:51:48,405 -You can see it continues across the landscape, 1007 00:51:48,405 --> 00:51:50,438 and it goes all the way around up. 1008 00:51:50,438 --> 00:51:54,805 So it kind of curves around here. 1009 00:51:54,805 --> 00:51:56,305 So it does seem a bit like 1010 00:51:56,305 --> 00:51:57,871 it's enclosing at the sort of top of the hill. 1011 00:51:57,871 --> 00:52:00,538 It's actually -- It's where we chose for our campsite. 1012 00:52:00,538 --> 00:52:01,571 -Yes! -[ Laughs ] 1013 00:52:01,571 --> 00:52:03,738 -You're not the first. -No! 1014 00:52:03,738 --> 00:52:10,171 ♪♪ 1015 00:52:10,171 --> 00:52:11,838 So you can imagine that, you know, people... 1016 00:52:11,838 --> 00:52:13,138 -Settlement. 1017 00:52:13,138 --> 00:52:15,605 -...several thousand years ago chose the same spot. 1018 00:52:15,605 --> 00:52:17,605 ♪♪ 1019 00:52:17,605 --> 00:52:21,505 -If the prehistoric ditch once encircled this hilltop, 1020 00:52:21,505 --> 00:52:23,838 it may have been dug by Stone Age farmers 1021 00:52:23,838 --> 00:52:26,038 to contain their livestock. 1022 00:52:26,038 --> 00:52:29,371 ♪♪ 1023 00:52:29,371 --> 00:52:33,438 But Mark has another theory. 1024 00:52:33,438 --> 00:52:35,138 -This ditch of this size, 1025 00:52:35,138 --> 00:52:39,405 I mean, the best interpretation is it's ritual, 1026 00:52:39,405 --> 00:52:43,005 some form of really elaborate complex ritual site 1027 00:52:43,005 --> 00:52:44,705 here on top of this hill. 1028 00:52:48,871 --> 00:52:53,338 So, to put it in perspective, this belongs to the Stone Age. 1029 00:52:53,338 --> 00:52:57,771 It's probably a thousand years older than, say, Stonehenge. 1030 00:52:57,771 --> 00:52:59,105 But it's in the same idea. 1031 00:52:59,105 --> 00:53:02,271 It's a -- a ritual communal monument 1032 00:53:02,271 --> 00:53:06,405 where people come and gather at particular times of year 1033 00:53:06,405 --> 00:53:11,471 to celebrate festivals, to exchange goods, and so forth. 1034 00:53:11,471 --> 00:53:15,338 These Neolithic settlements are really quite rare. 1035 00:53:15,338 --> 00:53:20,138 There's about 90 of them known in Britain. 1036 00:53:20,138 --> 00:53:24,771 If I'm right, that really is an incredible discovery. 1037 00:53:24,771 --> 00:53:31,438 ♪♪ 1038 00:53:31,438 --> 00:53:33,838 -I can see people wanting to be on this piece of land, 1039 00:53:33,838 --> 00:53:35,805 'cause it has everything you need. 1040 00:53:35,805 --> 00:53:38,738 It's got beautiful fields, you know, for agriculture. 1041 00:53:38,738 --> 00:53:40,838 It's got water. It's got the views. 1042 00:53:40,838 --> 00:53:44,105 It's got some form of defense by being up high. I get that. 1043 00:53:44,105 --> 00:53:45,871 So whether it's ritual or agricultural, 1044 00:53:45,871 --> 00:53:47,605 it's still wonderful. 1045 00:53:47,605 --> 00:53:49,971 -It's probably a little bit of everything, I think. 1046 00:53:49,971 --> 00:53:51,405 -Yes. -I think these sites 1047 00:53:51,405 --> 00:53:53,738 are quite multifunctional. 1048 00:53:53,738 --> 00:53:55,338 -How incredible. Well, I'm thrilled. 1049 00:53:55,338 --> 00:53:57,105 That is really quite something, isn't it? 1050 00:53:57,105 --> 00:53:59,605 -Kind of exciting, really. -Well, yes! 1051 00:53:59,605 --> 00:54:05,071 ♪♪ 1052 00:54:05,071 --> 00:54:06,471 -It's just such a privilege 1053 00:54:06,471 --> 00:54:09,938 to be able to spend a few weeks in a place like this. 1054 00:54:09,938 --> 00:54:12,605 It has been a little bit of a roller-coaster ride 1055 00:54:12,605 --> 00:54:15,671 of ups and downs, especially at the beginning 1056 00:54:15,671 --> 00:54:18,205 when we realized that the place that we were digging 1057 00:54:18,205 --> 00:54:20,838 were absolutely not the medieval village, 1058 00:54:20,838 --> 00:54:24,105 but something entirely different. 1059 00:54:24,105 --> 00:54:25,905 But it's just a landscape 1060 00:54:25,905 --> 00:54:28,238 that's extremely rich in history. 1061 00:54:28,238 --> 00:54:30,838 And if what's on top of that hill 1062 00:54:30,838 --> 00:54:32,738 really is what we think it is, 1063 00:54:32,738 --> 00:54:35,671 then that goes back at least 5,000 years 1064 00:54:35,671 --> 00:54:37,971 of people living in this landscape, 1065 00:54:37,971 --> 00:54:40,071 and that's something really quite special, 1066 00:54:40,071 --> 00:54:42,338 to have been the ones to discover. 1067 00:54:42,338 --> 00:54:44,005 -Cheers! -Cheers! 1068 00:54:44,005 --> 00:54:45,538 [ Laughter ] 1069 00:54:45,538 --> 00:54:50,238 ♪♪ 1070 00:54:50,238 --> 00:54:51,905 -To think that there were people here 1071 00:54:51,905 --> 00:54:53,971 5,000 or 6,000 years ago 1072 00:54:53,971 --> 00:54:56,938 enjoying the same setting that I've known all my life, 1073 00:54:56,938 --> 00:55:01,738 it's really -- it's very humbling, actually. 1074 00:55:01,738 --> 00:55:04,138 I'm not remotely worried about  not finding the Saxon village, 1075 00:55:04,138 --> 00:55:06,105 'cause that's the one thing we know is here. 1076 00:55:06,105 --> 00:55:09,871 Somewhere in this property there is a Saxon village. 1077 00:55:09,871 --> 00:55:15,171 And one day I'll find it or somebody will find it. 1078 00:55:15,171 --> 00:55:17,038 But to find something so much more interesting, 1079 00:55:17,038 --> 00:55:18,938 well, that's more than a bonus. 1080 00:55:18,938 --> 00:55:20,505 It's -- It's unbelievable. 1081 00:55:20,505 --> 00:55:29,805 ♪♪