“Archaeological Revelations: The Mysterious Bronze Age Woman Unearthed Beneath Britain’s Modern Streets”
In addition to the nearly complete skeleton, archaeologists also uncovered the partial remains of other people — including a skull fragment from a young woman who died between 500 and 400 B.C.E.
Thrillingly, that’s not all they found in the area, which archaeologists say was the site of “prolonged occupations” for hundreds of years from the Bronze Age until the post-medieval period.
The Historical Significance Of The Thanet Site
In addition to the Bronze Age human remains, archaeologists also made other discoveries at the site. They uncovered ditches, enclosures, evidence of a Roman road, and what appears to be a prehistoric “monumental” ditch containing a Beaker burial (a custom in Britain between 2500 B.C.E. and 1800 B.C.E. in which the deceased were buried with distinctive pots).
SWAT ArchaeologyThe pot found in the Beaker burial at the site.
Archaeologists also found flint, pottery, and animal remains, such as goats, sheep, cattle, a crow, and a cat.
For archaeologists at the site, such a wealth of historical objects isn’t a complete surprise. Thanet is known for its rich archaeological history: It’s believed that Romans invading Britain first arrived along the southern edge of the peninsula, and hundreds of years later, the Christian mission to the British Isles led by St. Augustine also disembarked in Thanet.
SWAT ArchaeologyMore pottery found at the Thanet site.
Though the planned housing development moved forward at the site after the archaeological survey, the skeleton of the Bronze Age woman will be archived at a museum. That way her story, which began thousands of years ago, can continue to be told.
