Wroughton, Wiltshire: On the Edge, Above the Vale
Author: Jonathan Hart, Clare Randall and Alistair J. Barclay
Excavations at the former RAF Wroughton on behalf of the Science Museum Group revealed Iron Age and Roman archaeology, as well as remains relating to the former Royal Airforce airfield.
The earliest evidence was of the Beaker period, after which in the Late Bronze Age or Early Iron Age two converging pit alignments were established, which may have marked a routeway. A substantial open settlement with at least 11 roundhouses and over 150 pits was formed at some time during the Iron Age. Some of the pits contained human burials, the earliest of which may have been bound and stored prior to interment. By the Late Iron Age/Early Roman period the settlement was replaced by a field system and enclosures. In the Late Roman period a small cemetery was established. After this the site was largely abandoned, being used for cultivation until the construction of the airfield during the Second World War.
