Northdown Excavation, Margate

The Northdown area contains a great wealth of archaeological monuments as clearly shown by cropmarks on aerial photographs in the Cambridge University Collection. They suggest that the area was a major focus of burial and perhaps ceremonial activity in the prehistoric period. Most crop-marks are of small circular ditched enclosures, perhaps ploughed-out round barrows. There are also traces of linear ditches, some of which may be remains of a former field system and others which may be burial enclosures. There are, too, a few slightly larger, more complex, circular crop-marks with suggestions of internal features. One of these has a ditch with probable traces of a former external bank and so, in form at least, is henge-like. This latter site is being excavated this summer by the Central Excavation Unit of the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission, and the work should be completed by the end of September. Anyone wishing to help should contact George Smith on site (just north of East Northdown Farm), Sundays-Thursdays 8.30-5.00 or in writing to HBMC Excavations. It is hoped to hold an Open Day for visitors on Sunday 23 September. If this proves possible, it will be confirmed by an advertisement the previous week in the local paper.