Archaeologists Discover Massive Prehistoric Henge in ‘Rare’ Find

Archaeologists have discovered a large prehistoric “henge,” shedding new light on a sacred site that was in use for millennia.

The henge, a type of circular earthwork, came to light during excavations at Anchor Church Field, located to the northeast of Crowland—a small town in the county of Lincolnshire in eastern England.

The previously unknown henge, which dates back to the late Neolithic or early Bronze Age (around 2900 B.C. to 1600 B.C.), is one of the largest ever discovered in eastern England, a study published in the Journal of Field Archaeology that describes the findings reported.

The henge measures almost 250 feet across and is surrounded by a ditch approximately 16 feet wide. At the time of its construction, the site where the henge is located lay on a peninsula that was surrounded on three sides by water and marshes. In addition, it would have been situated on a distinctive and highly visible point.

Given its size and location, the henge would likely have been a prominent site in the region, serving as a significant hub for ceremonial activity, according to the study authors—Duncan Wright of Newcastle University and Hugh Willmott of the University of Sheffield.

Other henges have been documented in the surrounding areas, but most are far smaller than the example at Crowland. They are also generally considered to be less impressive than those found in other regions of Great Britain.

“A monument of this scale suggests that Crowland was an important ceremonial center and focal point in the late prehistoric period,” Wright told Newsweek. “In prehistoric times the henge would have formed a large circular enclosed space, with a huge bank and ditch running around the outside. It may have had one or more burial mounds built inside it during the Bronze Age.”

The recent excavations at Anchor Church Field were, in part, motivated by a desire to find an early medieval hermitage (the dwelling of a hermit) whose location has long eluded researchers.

Historical accounts indicate that Crowland was home to a hermitage belonging to Saint Guthlac—a monk who established himself as a hermit around the year A.D. 700, during the Anglo-Saxon period. Guthlac had previously given up a life of riches as a successful warrior and son of a nobleman.

The monk died in A.D. 714 and his uncorrupted body was discovered around a year after his death. Following the discovery, a small monastic community began to venerate Guthlac. The success of his cult and the pilgrimage it inspired played a key role in the subsequent establishment of Crowland Abbey, the remains of which are still visible today.

The primary source of information for Guthlac’s life is a text known as the Vita Sancti Guthlaci (“Life of Saint Guthlac”) written shortly after his death by a monk called Felix. While the author’s hagiographic account may not necessarily be a reliable presentation of the saint’s life, the text indicates that Guthlac created his hermitage from a previously plundered barrow, or burial mound.

For years, experts have tried to identify the hermitage’s location, with Anchor Church Field suggested as the most likely site. But the lack of excavations and the increasing impact of agricultural activity in the area have stood in the way of a comprehensive understanding of the site. This knowledge gap is what the researchers wanted to address in the latest study.

“We’ve been interested in Anchor Church Field for a long time. The site is recognized as one of high archaeological potential, but had never been investigated thoroughly,” Wright said. “It was also clear that the archaeology on the site was being damaged over time, so it was important to characterize the material before its total destruction/removal.”

While the research did not uncover any conclusive evidence for a hermitage associated with Guthlac, the investigations did shed new light on the history of the site.

The prehistoric henge appears to have been abandoned at some point, but the earthwork would still have been visible into the medieval period. It is likely the monument would have been seen as a significant sacred site by hermits.

Around the time of Guthlac’s life, the henge appears to have been reoccupied, with the recent excavations uncovering large quantities of material dated to this period, including pottery, two bone combs and fragments of glass from a high-status drinking vessel. But these remains only provide a small glimpse into how the site was being used in this period.

“We know that many prehistoric monuments were reused by the Anglo-Saxons, but to find a henge—especially one that was previously unknown—occupied in this way is really quite rare,” Wright said in a press release.

“Although the Anglo-Saxon objects we found cannot be linked with Guthlac with any certainty, the use of the site around this time and later in the medieval period adds weight to the idea that Crowland was a sacred space at different times over millennia,” he said.

The excavations also uncovered the remains of a hall and chapel dated to the 12th century, built by the abbots of Crowland.

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