Artifacts unearthed near Lincoln include a 5,000-year-old ax head and remains of Roman architecture.
Archaeologists working along the planned North Hackham Relief Road say they have uncovered evidence of a previously undiscovered Roman dwelling near Bracebridge Heath.
Chris Clay of Allen Archaeologists Ltd, who led the work, said: “We expected this to be a Roman site and that’s what we got, but we also got some indications that there was earlier activity here, dating back to around 3000 BC.”
The excavation work will begin in October 2025 and is expected to be completed in early 2026, in an area that will be used for the construction of a new bypass worth £208 million.
Chris Clay says axes are evidence of pre-Roman life [BBC]
Roman walls and a section of Roman columns were also found in several pits in farmland next to the A607.
Mr Clay said they also unearthed thousands of pieces of Roman pottery and dozens of personal items from the period, such as brooches, bracelets and hairpins.
He said evidence showed there were Roman houses outside the city “like the big houses we have today in prosperous suburbs”.
He said: “We are only a mile or two from Lincoln, one of the most important towns in Roman Britain, and it has stunning views over the Vale of Witham, so it would have been a nice country home for a wealthy, high-status Roman family.”
Archaeologists believe the architectural remains come from a house belonging to a wealthy Roman family [BBC]
He said one of the most surprising finds at the site was a highly polished Neolithic stone ax head with a still-sharp edge that dates to about 3,000 years before Roman Britain ruled.
“It’s a high-status item that’s not going to be used to chop down trees, it’s just too valuable,” he said.
“Perhaps this site is a gathering point for the community to come together for special events.
“The axes were probably exchanged or traded as a commodity.”
A bone Roman hairpin is one of many artifacts that have been discovered [BBC]
Ian George of Lincolnshire County Council said the Roman remains were helping historians understand life outside the town.
“We know a lot about Roman Lincoln, but we know very little about the landscape around it and how people used it, so it’s about putting some pieces of that picture together,” he said.
He said it was “remarkable” that the ax had survived, adding “we know so little about Neolithic Lincolnshire”.
Construction of the road is expected to begin in early 2026.
The committee added that once new evidence is recorded, the artefacts will be handed over to the Lincoln Museum and the architectural remains will be covered by new roads.
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