The dig

'Surgical trenches'
Day One starts with the geophysics team facing a massive area to survey. Only part of the site was surveyed before, so John Gater and his team have their hands full trying to complete the picture. Judging by the earlier geophysics printout the quality of the archaeological features is outstanding. The plan is not to plough right through the middle of the site, but to place 'surgical' trenches around the outside to try to discover more about it without damaging the preserved archaeology. The first trench is placed at the edge of the site through what looks like a boundary ditch.

Part of the day is taken up with investigating the surrounding landscape to try to get the site in perspective. 'We need to know what else surrounds this place so that we can understand it better,' says Time Team landscape guru Stewart Ainsworth. A large Iron-Age hillfort is on the high ground nearby, while the River Avon cuts through its large terraces of highly fertile land so prized by farmers, both now and in the past. Worcester archaeologist Robin Jackson confirms that lots of finds and scatters of evidence point towards the river terraces being popular places for settlement in prehistory.

By the afternoon another two trenches have been opened over features at the edge of the site. Phil Harding has discovered a ditch together with finds of Iron-Age pottery, while over at Trench One Katie Hirst has discovered more Iron-Age pottery and what looks like the foundations of a roundhouse about nine metres (30 feet) in diameter. There is still some debate about whether the site is Iron Age or Bronze Age. Dr Francis Pryor (Bronze-Age expert) is convinced that some aspects of the site could be Bronze Age, while Dr Jeremy Taylor (Iron-Age Expert) thinks otherwise.

Lots of targets
Day Two and the geophysics results for the rest of the site look great. Lines of circular features and various ditches cover the whole area. 'Now we've got lots of targets to look at,' says Mick Aston. With the approval of Worcester County Archaeologist Malcolm Atkin the team can now investigate further to try to determine the nature and function of the settlement. More trenches are added at prudent locations and the evidence quickly starts to appear. Most of the trenches are producing Middle-Iron-Age pottery (100-300 BC), so the Bronze-Age theories of Francis Pryor look like they are fading into the distance.

Bronze-Age connection
By Day Three the site has seven trenches open. The task now is to establish the boundary of the settlement and try to get some clues as to the status of the site. Phil's trench has evidence of a roundhouse and that is the focus of activity. But Francis Pryor hasn't given up on a Bronze-Age connection. He's grabbed a mattock along with Jeremy Taylor and started to excavate a Bronze-Age-looking ditch. Sure enough, after a few hours' digging they find that this particular ditch can be dated to the Bronze Age. Francis looks happy and the team can now extend their knowledge concerning the occupation of the area.

Meanwhile, geophysics has located the boundary ditch for what was clearly a sizeable settlement and Phil has even discovered some iron fragments inside the area of his house. It seems that ironworking may well have been taking place here. Things are going well and as the sun goes down on Day Three the team is happy to have answered the principal questions about the site. Throckmorton was busy with activity some 2,000 years ago; from Bronze-Age origins the site became a classic Iron-Age settlement with roundhouses, enclosures and boundary ditches. Not a bad synopsis after just three days' hard work.