*Historical* The image above is a recreation of how an ancient iron age settlement looks, and is similar to the farmstead that once existed at a high point by Carshalton Park. It was situated around the patch of land, pictured below, behind the fence on the corner of two roads, The Park and Park Close.
It’s amazing to think that this suburban location had people making a life for themselves all that time ago, dating back 400 to 100 BC, during the Middle Iron Age.
The incredible pictures below show where specialists uncovered a dense cluster of pits, some of which are believed to be grain storage pits. The discoveries made here are considered an important historical find as so little is known about ordinary people’s lives during this period in history, on the edge of the North Downs. The dig took place in 2012.
Archeologists found iron age pottery and a pit containing a sheep’s head and horse, pig and cattle bones. The most complete object from this dig: a simple, upright rounded-rim jar with a low rounded shoulder
Being situated at the top of a hill, the farmstead offered a commanding viewpoint, and just up from a natural chalk spring – perfect for drinking water.
You can see Carshalton Park in the back of this photo.
Just at the top of Park Close is a pedestrian cut through to Blakehall Road, and hidden behind the old Carshalton Park boundary wall was a circular mounded area called ‘The Mount’ and marked on old maps. It’s now in someone’s back garden. Whether this was connected to the iron age farmstead nearby is a possibility, though there’s no evidence. It may have been connected to the later landowner of Carshalton Park.
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Credits: © Google Maps, Farmstead picture of Butser Ancient Farm in Hampshire via Wikipedia © Geni, CC BY-SA 4.0 Creative Commons, and dig pictures and information via Layers of London © Geni, CC BY-SA 4.0 Creative Commons. Words and current pics © Secret Carshalton 2022
It is interesting that the boundary wall pictured is not listed whereas other parts of the wall to the east are GII listed.
The east side of my garden has a retaining wall behind which much of the mound remains.