{"id":96144,"date":"2021-07-14T08:55:32","date_gmt":"2021-07-14T07:55:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pbctoday.co.uk\/news\/?p=96144"},"modified":"2021-07-14T08:55:32","modified_gmt":"2021-07-14T07:55:32","slug":"hs2-iron-age-potins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pbctoday.co.uk\/news\/planning-construction-news\/hs2-iron-age-potins\/96144\/","title":{"rendered":"HS2 archaeologists uncover hoard of Iron Age potins"},"content":{"rendered":"

Contractor Costain<\/a> Skanska<\/a> joint venture (CS JV) and archaeologists working on the HS2<\/a> project have uncovered a rare set of Iron Age potins, dating back to the 1st century BC<\/h2>\n

The hoard of over 300 potins is a significant historical find and was discovered in Hillingdon in August last year (2020).<\/p>\n

\u2018The Hillingdon Hoard\u2019 dates back to the late Iron Age, during a period of change as the Romans began to establish themselves in Britain and create Londinium.<\/p>\n

The potins are based on coins struck in Marseille, France, around 2,175 years ago, which bear the left-facing head of Apollo on one side and a bull charging right on the other.<\/p>\n

HS2\u2019s head of heritage, Helen Wass said: \u201cAt HS2 we are not only building for the future, we are also preserving the past. This is an exciting find for our team of archaeologists<\/a> and provides us with more information about how our ancestors lived and settled in London.<\/p>\n

\u201cHS2\u2019s unprecedented archaeological programme has enabled us to tell the stories of our history and leave a lasting legacy for future generations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Archaeologists analysing the discovery believe the potins may have been to mark the boundary of a property or as an offering to the Gods.<\/p>\n

The site in Hillingdon was undergoing archaeological excavation and analysis led by HS2\u2019s enabling works contractor, Costain Skanska JV.<\/p>\n

\u2018A once in a lifetime find\u2019<\/h3>\n

Emma Tetlow, historic environment lead for HS2\u2019s main works contractor Skanska Costain STRABAG joint venture, said: \u201cWe were coming to the end of our archaeological work<\/a> on the site when we found a patch of soil that was a very different colour from what it would be expected to be.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe patch of soil was dark greeny-blue which suggests oxidized metal, and when we checked more closely, we could see loosely packed metal discs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a once in a lifetime find, and allows us to expand our knowledge of what life could have been like in Hillingdon many centuries ago.\u201d<\/p>\n

A local coroner will determine whether the discovery amounts to \u2018treasure\u2019 after considering specialist evidence from the British Museum.<\/p>\n

Duncan Wilson, Historic England<\/a> chief executive, commented: \u201cThey say that money talks so what can this unexpected discovery tell us?\u00a0It takes us back to the tumultuous time of Julius Caesar\u2019s conquest of Gaul.<\/p>\n

\u201cReaching Britain in 55 and 54 BC he observed the locals using \u2018bronze\u2019 coins, an innovation they had adopted not long before through cross-channel migration and trade.<\/p>\n

“Hoards like this are now protected by law so that they can be studied to learn more about how these early coins were used, and perhaps shed light on why they came to be hidden in a seemingly remote place.<\/p>\n

\u201cExtensive projects like HS2 will always bring about archaeological discoveries which is why Historic England works with HS2 to ensure thorough surveys and investigations.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Contractor Costain Skanska joint venture (CS JV) and archaeologists working on the HS2 project have uncovered a rare set of Iron Age potins, dating back to the 1st century BC.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[304],"tags":[463,473,579],"stakeholder_rel_tag":[],"contributor_rel_tag":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-96144","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-planning-construction-news","7":"tag-archaeology","8":"tag-hs2","9":"tag-infrastructure"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHS2 archaeologists uncover hoard of Iron Age potins<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Contractor Costain Skanska joint venture (CS JV) and 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