This intriguing mound has long proved to be an archaeological enigma. No doubt spurred on by stories of rich burials, antiquarians and archaeologists have dug at least three separate tunnels into the centre.
In 1776 Hugh Percy, duke of Northumberland, financially supported an excavation by Edward Drax, who directed a group of miners to dig a vertical shaft from the summit to the centre of the hill. They failed to find the central burial they had expected.
Later, in 1849, John Merewether, the dean of Hereford, oversaw the excavation of a horizontal tunnel into hill. Again, no central burial was discovered but organic remains including decayed moss and turf were found.
Professor Richard Atkinson led a third major investigation between 1968 and 1970. Sponsored by the BBC, it was the first excavation to be televised as it progressed. Atkinson excavated another tunnel on a similar line to Merewether's and identified three phases of construction.
Not one of these tunnels was fully backfilled, leaving an unfortunate legacy. In May 2000 the full consequence of this was made clear when a 14 metre deep crater unexpectedly opened on the summit. Further survey showed that the tunnels inside were collapsing. Having temporarily filled the crater with polystyrene, something had to be done to stabilise the hill.
Disclaimer
The text and pictures on this page are derived from the 'Heritage Unlocked' series of guidebooks published in 2004. We intend to review, update and enhance the content in the near future as part of the Portico project, whose objective is to provide information on the history, significance, research background and sources for all English Heritage properties.
