SILBURY HILL


Description:  A Late Neolithic flat-topped conical mound which stands to a height of some 37 metres above an encircling quarry ditch. Excavation has occurred on several occasions, beginning with the digging of a shaft from the top in 1776-7, and including an attempt to dig a horizontal tunnel to the centre in 1849. The most recent excavations were conducted 1968-70 by R Atkinson, which utilized the 1849 tunnel. These were published in 1997 by Alasdair Whittle. His report also includes a full summary of earlier observations and excavations at Silbury Hill. The monument was shown to have started as a mound circa 40 metres in diameter constructed on a chalk spur projecting onto the Kennet valley. There was no clear evidence for any major pauses in the construction sequence, and the mound was subsequently enlarged to a diameter of circa 160 metres by piling up chalk rubble in horizontal layers. Chalk was obtained by digging a surrounding ditch, which had the effect of cutting back the chalk spur and exaggerating the apparent height of the constructed mound. Limited excavation on the top of the mound revealed concentric chalk walling, suggesting that the mound may have been constructed as a stepped cone. It is unclear whether the flat top is an original feature or the result of later modification. Dating evidence is problematic, but Whittle suggests that construction probably occurred during the mid-to-late 3rd millennium BC. The summit has seen several later episodes of disturbance, including some form of revetment of late Saxon date (late Saxon or early Norman potsherds were found, as was a coin of circa 1010AD). William Stukeley recorded the discovery of a skeleton in 1723 during tree planting on the summit. The finds suggest that this may have been of similar date. Roman finds have been reported from some of the excavations, and a "midden" layer was found in the upper fill of the quarry ditch during Atkinson's excavations. Silbury Hill is a scheduled ancient monument.

Country:  ENGLAND

County:  WILTSHIRE

District:  KENNET

Parish:  AVEBURY

Grid Reference:   SU10016853

Map Reference:  [EPSG:27700] 410010, 168530

Period:  EARLY MEDIEVAL, MEDIEVAL, ROMAN, 43 - 410, 800 - 1100, LATE NEOLITHIC, 1000 - 1020, 851 - 1042

Subject:  ANIMAL REMAINS, BRACELET, BRIDLE, COIN, EARTHWORK, FIND, FINDSPOT, INHUMATION, KNIFE, MONUMENTAL MOUND, REVETMENT, SUB SURFACE DEPOSIT, VESSEL, WHETSTONE

Identifiers: 
[ADS] Depositor Id: SU 16 NW 21
[ADS] Import RCN: NMR_NATINV-220743

People Involved: 
[Publisher] Historic England