Wickenby, Lincolnshire
First screened 23 March 2008

Wickenby – Background

The site investigated for this programme covers several fields and lies between two villages – Wickenby to the west and Lissington to the east. It lay hidden for centuries until discovered by a local metal detectorist, Keith Kelway. Over the years Keith has recovered more than 300 metal artefacts from the area. Most are Roman, with some Iron-Age and Anglo-Saxon material.

Lincolnshire is one of the least investigated parts of Roman Britain. Time Team's investigation gave archaeologists the opportunity to take a look at Roman Lincolnshire and its relationship with Lincoln, a major Roman centre.

Today the site lies off the beaten track. But we know that in Roman times at least one significant road ran to the south, branching off from Ermine Street in Lincoln. The site would have been a short walk away; a hedgerow that runs through it marks the line of what used to be an old lane as late as the 19th century.

So what do we know about the people who lived here? A previous geophysics survey and excavation suggested there might be evidence of industrial activity, perhaps even a kiln here. We know that several kilns existed in the nearby towns of Market Rasen and Linwood. The metal detectorist finds include around 100 brooches and many other metal objects. Old maps reveal a filled-in spring and there are several streams running through the area. Could some of these objects be votive offerings at a shrine linked to this spring?

Was this just a small wayside village or part of Roman suburbia? Nobody knows how far the territorium of Roman Lincoln – the area that provided the town with its resources – extended.  From previous estimates of its size, Wickenby could lie well within this area.

In the Anglo-Saxon period, one of our fields may have been a meeting place for the kingdom of Lindsey. The boundaries of three ridings met there – as do three parish boundaries today. A number of Anglo-Saxon finds come from this field. Was the site also in use after the Roman period? And could this give us insights into the period known as the 'Dark Ages'? Time Team had three days to find out.

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