Archaeological Reports - Highways Agency

The Highways Agency has a large number of archaeological reports that have been commissioned for various road schemes across the country. They are available on request as emailed pdfs.

Of course my interest is mainly in the Stonehenge area so I requested and was sent two.

A303 Stonehenge_Archaeology on the A303
A303 Stone­henge improvement_Historic Land­scape Survey

The link to the page is:

Area 2 Archaeological Reports - Highways Agency:

Which lists lots more interesting ones.....

• A303 Stone­henge improvement_Historic Land­scape Survey
• A303 Stone­henge Improvements_Manuscript Maps
• A303 Stone­henge VII_geophysical survey
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological sur­vey 2001_Areas A B C and D
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological sur­vey 2001_Areas K L M N and O
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological sur­vey 2001_Field eval­u­a­tion strategy
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_Archaeological Eval­u­a­tion Report: Area C1
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_Archaeological Eval­u­a­tion Report: Area P
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_Archaeological Eval­u­a­tion Report: Areas 1,2,3 and 4
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_Archaeological Eval­u­a­tion Report: Areas A,B,C and D
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_Archaeological Eval­u­a­tion Report: Areas L and O
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_Archaeological Eval­u­a­tion Report: Areas R and T
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_Archaeological Eval­u­a­tion Report: Drainage Treate­ment Areas 2 and 6t
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_Field Eval­u­a­tion strategy
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_Quantification and Assess­ment of Archae­o­log­i­cal Sur­veys Archive
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_Stage 2 Field­walk­ing Survey
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_Till Val­ley Auger Tran­sect and Test Pits
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_WSI for Field Eval­u­a­tion Area C1
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_WSI for Field Eval­u­a­tion Area P
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_WSI for Field Eval­u­a­tion Areas A,B,C and D
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_WSI for Field Eval­u­a­tion Areas K,L,M,N and O
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological Survey_WSI for Field Eval­u­a­tion Areas Q,R,S,T and U
• A303 STONEHENGE_Archaeological surveys_Area C1
• A303 Stonehenge_Archaeology on the A303
• A303 Stonehenge_environmental statement
• A303 STONEHENGE_Fieldwalking sur­vey and Envi­ron­men­tal Sampling
• A303 STONEHENGE_Geotechnical Site Investigation_Archaeological Watch­ing Brief
• A303 STONEHENGE_Ground Inves­ti­ga­tion 2002: Archae­o­log­i­cal Watch­ing Brief
• A303 UPGRADING AMESBURY TO BERWICK DOWN_Archaeological Assess­ment stage 2

A history of the Marlborough Downs in a photograph.

(Click for larger)

The Marlborough Downs east of the A361, south of the A4 and north of the Wansdyke are a wonderful lonely space to explore. Old maps show many ditches, dykes and enclosures with Sarsen stones dotted around. The old sheep runs were ploughed up during the twentieth century and many of these features were obliterated.
But now the downland is being recreated in parts and the plough lies rusting. But the loss of heritage is lamentable. Badgers, rabbits and moles are also busy at work returning tumuli and banks to featureless downland.
But enough remains to fascinate, do visit.

Stonehenge Fences - The Case Law

House of Lords - Director of Public Prosecutions v. Jones and Another (On Appeal from a Divisional Court of the Queen's Bench Division)

Attorney-General v. Antrobus [1905] 2 Ch. 188

(Lord Antrobus was the owner of Stonehenge and had fenced it off and started charging for entry)

 ...The owner of the land had enclosed the monument by fencing on the view that this was necessary for its protection. The Attorney-General wished to remove the fencing in order to keep the place open so that the public could visit it. The action failed, because there could be no public right of way to the monument acquired by mere user or by the fact that the public had been in the habit of visiting it. At p. 198 Farwell J. said that the jus spatiandi--the right to walk about or to promenade--was not known to our law as a possible subject-matter of prescription. At p. 206 he said that the public had no jus spatiandi or manendi--the right to stay or remain--within the circle. In In re Ellenborough Park [1956] Ch. 131, in which it was held that the jus spatiandi, in regard to a right to use a pleasure park, could be acquired by grant as an easement, Lord Evershed M.R. observed at p. 163 that Farwell J.'s rejection of it may have been derived in part from its similar rejection by the law of Rome, and that there was no other judicial authority for adopting the Roman view in this respect into English law. But as to the matter of public right he went on at p. 184 to say this:

"There is no doubt, in our judgment, but that Attorney-General v. Antrobus was rightly decided; for no such right can be granted (otherwise than by Statute) to the public at large to wander at will over an undefined open space, nor can the public acquire such a right by prescription."

Although the use of these Latin words may seem out of date in present circumstances, they serve nevertheless as a valuable reminder of the place which the right to assemble must occupy in the context of the law relating to real property. Easements and public rights to land which are acquired by user or by dedication are limited rights, as against the occupier or owner of the land which is affected by them. They are granted or acquired for a particular purpose only, and they are not to be confused with the use of the land for other purposes. Thus a right of way or passage is entirely different from a right to walk about or a right to remain in one place. The law recognises that a right of way or passage may be acquired by user or by dedication. But it takes a different view of the right to walk about or to remain in one place. These are not rights which the public can acquire by user or by dedication. If rights of this kind can be acquired at all they can be acquired only by express grant. So they cannot be included among the rights of access which the public can enjoy as of right without the consent of the landowner.

Stonehenge Panorama

English Heritage has released a complete panoramic view of Stonehenge from the centre, move around with your mouse.

Opens in a new window - Stonehenge Panorama

Warmer and wetter 4,500 years ago

12/2012 - Silbury Hill, Wiltshire: Palaeohydrology of the Kennet, Swallowhead Springs and the Siting of Silbury Hill - English Heritage Research Department Report

The modelling results have recreated a palaeohydrology for the Avebury and Silbury area and indicate that there was a wetter climate in the area. This would have generated higher river flows and most importantly higher groundwater levels, which would have sustained the local populations through dry summers. Also, the raised water table would have ensured waterlogged ground in places, which when coupled with increased vegetation and tree cover would have provided a more sustainable environment and better soils for crops in the area. Thus the study indicates that there would have been wetter and warmer conditions in 4000-4500BP

Download report: Silbury Hill, Wiltshire: Palaeohydrology of the Kennet, Swallowhead Springs and the Siting of Silbury Hill

Interestingly, the changes predicted for the 4000-4500BP period by the Bridge CGM are actually quite similar to the predictions of future climate change in the UK (Wilby et al 2006), which implies that we are moving back to a 4000-4500BP climate in the UK.

Of course this is around the period when the Sarsen stones are presumed to have been transported from the Marlborough Downs nearby and across the Kennet to Stonehenge. Can we please not mention sliding them on ice down the frozen Avon again; that theory is just not compatible with the climatic evidence.

A History of Stonehenge Excavations

A comprehensive, though probably not complete, list of Stonehenge excavations - based on http://eprints.bournemouth.ac.uk/9689/7/151-158_appendix_1.qxd.pdf, with the publications of their reports.


1620. Duke of Buckingham had an excavation made
within Stonehenge.

1633–52. Inigo Jones conducted the first ‘scientific’ surveys
of Stonehenge.
Jones, I, and Webb, J, 1655, The most notable antiquity of Great
Britain vulgarly called Stone-Heng on Salisbury plain.
London: J Flesher for D Pakeman and L Chapman

1666. John Aubrey surveyed Stonehenge and produced his
‘Review’ in 1666, where he described the prehistoric pits,
later known as the Aubrey Holes.
Aubrey, J, 1693 (edited by J Fowles 1982), Monumenta Britannica.
Sherborne, Dorset: Dorset Publishing Co

1721–4. William Stukeley surveyed and excavated
Stonehenge and its field monuments.

1721. William Stukeley discovered the Avenue extending
beyond Stonehenge Bottom to King Barrow Ridge.

1723. William Stukeley discovered the Cursus.
Stukeley, W, 1740, Stonehenge: a temple restor’d to the British
druids. London: W Innys and R Manby

1798. William Cunnington dug under the fallen stones
(numbers 56 and 57) at Stonehenge.

1805–10. William Cunnington dug at Stonehenge on
various occasions.
Cunnington, W, 1884, Guide to the stones of Stonehenge. Devizes:
Bull Printer

1839. Captain Beamish excavated within Stonehenge.

1874–7. Professor Flinders Petrie produced a plan of
Stonehenge and numbered the stones.
Petrie, W M F, 1880, Stonehenge: plans, description, and theories.
London: Edward Stanford


1901. Professor William Gowland meticulously recorded and
excavated around stone number 56 at Stonehenge.
Gowland, W, 1902, Recent excavations at Stonehenge.
Archaeologia, 58, 37–82

1919–26. Colonel William Hawley extensively excavated in
advance of restoration programmes at Stonehenge for the
Office of Works and later for the Society of Antiquaries.
Hawley excavated ditch sections of the Avenue, conducted
an investigation of the Slaughter Stone and other stones at
Stonehenge, and rediscovered a number of Aubrey Holes
through excavation.
Cleal, R M J, Walker, K E, and Montague, R, 1995, Stonehenge and
its landscape: twentieth-century excavations (English
Heritage Archaeological Report 10). London: English Heritage.
Hawley, W, 1921, Stonehenge: interim report on the
exploration. Antiquaries Journal, 1, 19–41
Hawley, W, 1922, Second report on the excavations at Stonehenge.
Antiquaries Journal, 2, 36–52
Hawley, W, 1923, Third report on the excavations at Stonehenge.
Antiquaries Journal, 3, 13–20
Hawley, W, 1924, Fourth report on the excavations at Stonehenge,
1922. Antiquaries Journal, 4, 30–9
Hawley, W, 1925, Report on the excavations at Stonehenge during
the season of 1923. Antiquaries Journal, 5, 21–50
Hawley, W, 1926, Report on the excavations at Stonehenge during
the season of 1924. Antiquaries Journal, 6, 1–25
Hawley, W, 1928, Report on the excavations at Stonehenge during
1925 and 1926. Antiquaries Journal, 8, 149–76
Pitts, M, Bayliss, A, McKinley, J, Boylston, A, Budd, P, Evans,
J, Chenery, C, Reynolds, A, and Semple, S, 2002, An Anglo-
Saxon decapitation and burial at Stonehenge. Wiltshire
Archaeological and Natural History Magazine, 95, 131–46

1929. Robert Newall excavated Stone 36.
Newall, R S, 1929, Stonehenge. Antiquity, 3, 75–88
Newall, R S, 1929, Stonehenge, the recent excavations. Wiltshire
Archaeological and Natural History Magazine, 44, 348–59

1935. Young . Car Park area.

1950. Robert Newall excavated Stone 66.
Newall, R S, 1952, Stonehenge stone no. 66. Antiquaries Journal,
32, 65–7

1952. Robert Newall excavated Stones 71 and 72.

1950–64. A major campaign of excavations by Richard
Atkinson, Stuart Piggott, and Marcus Stone involving the
re-excavation of some of Hawley’s trenches as well as
previously undisturbed areas within Stonehenge.
Atkinson, R J C, Piggott, S, and Stone, J F S, 1952, The excavations
of two additional holes at Stonehenge, and new evidence for
the date of the monument. Antiquaries Journal, 32, 14–20
Atkinson, R J C, 1956, Stonehenge. London. Penguin Books in
association with Hamish Hamilton. (second revised edition
1979: Penguin Books)
Cleal, R M J, Walker, K E, and Montague, R, 1995, Stonehenge and
its landscape: twentieth-century excavations (English
Heritage Archaeological Report 10). London: English Heritage

1966. Faith and Lance Vatcher excavated within Stonehenge
car-park.
Vatcher, F de M and Vatcher, H L, 1973, Excavation of three
postholes in Stonehenge car park. Wiltshire Archaeological
and Natural History Magazine, 68, 57–63

1968. Faith and Lance Vatcher Geophone and floodlight cable trenches.

1978. John Evans re-excavated a 1954 cutting through the
Stonehenge ditch and bank to take samples for snail
analysis and radiocarbon dating. A well-preserved human
burial lay within the ditch fill. Three fine flint arrowheads
were found amongst the bones, with a fourth embedded in
the sternum.
Atkinson, R J C and Evans, J G, 1978. Recent excavations at
Stonehenge. Antiquity, 52, 235–6
Evans, J G, 1984, Stonehenge: the environment in the late Neolithic
and early Bronze Age, and a Beaker burial. Wiltshire
Archaeological and Natural History Magazine, 78, 7–30

1978. Thom and Atkinson. NE side of Station Stone 94

1979–80. George Smith excavated in the Stonehenge carpark
on behalf of the Central Excavation Unit.
Smith, G, 1980, Excavations in Stonehenge car park. Wiltshire
Archaeological and Natural History Magazine, 74/75
(1979–80), 181


1979–80. Mike Pitts excavated along the south side of A344
in advance of cable-laying and pipe-trenching. In 1979, he
discovered a pit belonging to a previously unknown stone
close to the Heel Stone. Geophysical survey identified pits
along the course of the Avenue. In 1980, Pitts excavated
beside the A344 where he discovered a stone floor and the
only complete prehistoric artefact assemblage retained from
the monument.
Pitts, M W, 1981, The discovery of a new stone at Stonehenge.
Archaeoastronomy, 4, 17–21
Pitts, M W, 1982, On the road to Stonehenge: Report on
investigations beside the A344 in 1968, 1979 and 1980.
Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society, 48, 75–132

1981. The Central Excavation Unit excavated in advance of
the construction of the footpath through Stonehenge.
Bond, D, 1983, An excavation at Stonehenge, 1981. Wiltshire
Archaeological and Natural History Magazine, 77, 39–43

1994. Wessex Archaeology. Limited Auger Survey.

2008. Timothy Darvill and Geoffrey Wainwright set out to date the construction of the Double Bluestone Circle at Stonehenge and to chart the subsequent history of the bluestones and their use at the monument.
The Antiquaries Journal / Volume 89 / September 2009, pp 1-19

West Amesbury House - Sarsen Stone Foundations?

From the Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Magazine Vol XI May 1868

I AM not aware of any instances in the immediate neighbourhood of Stonehenge, of church towers having large blocks of sarsen stone in their foundations, though there are many instances of it in the Pewsey vale and its vicinity.
My father resided for twenty-five years in West Amesbury House, and I have often heard him express his conviction, that a considerable quantity of fragments of the stones of Stonehenge were built into its walls. I could myself point out pieces of stone in the garden wall, which appear to be precisely similar in quality to the stones of the outer circle.
The house has undergone great alterations since my father lived in it. One of its wings was taken down about 1824 or 5, and about twenty-five years since, the court in front was filled up by building some rooms, so that it might not now be so easy to discover the original materials. It is now the farm house. Stonehenge stands on the estate, so that the builder of the house was the owner of that monument.
As to the time when some of the stones disappeared; it is most probable (if it was ever completed,) that a long period intervened between the destruction or removal of the first, and of the last of the missing stones. Inigo Jones, in his work on Stonehenge, which was written in 1620, according to the short account of his life prefixed to the edition of 1725, says, “Those of the inner circle, and lesser Hexagon not only exposed to the fury of all devouring age, but to the rage of men likewise, have been more subject to ruine. For being of no extraordinary proportions they might easily be beaten down or digged up, and at pleasure made use of for other occasions, which I am the rather enduced to believe, since my first measuring the work, not one fragment ,of some of then standing are now to be found.” Jones’s Stonehenge, p. 63, original small folio of 1655; p. 42 ed. 1725.—W. C. K..

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