County Durham is intensively exploited for its mineral resources, but in the past its archaeological landscape has been under-investigated. The Durham Aggregates Levy funded NMP project (4778) was undertaken to minimise the impact of extractive industries on the historic environment.
The project revealed sites from the Bronze Age through to the 20th century, helping to provide the necessary detailed information to inform the management of the archaeological resource of County Durham.
County Durham’s archaeological remains have long been under-investigated in comparison to other areas of Britain. As a consequence, the county, which is subject to substantial quarrying and mining activity, lacked the necessary detailed mapped information for the archaeological resource associated with areas of mineral reserve.
The targeted air survey mapping, combined with the landscape-scale assessment of the archaeology associated with areas of aggregate extraction has addressed these issues. It is hoped this product will inform the development of both minerals development frameworks and archaeological research, while providing a basis from which further work can proceed. Some of the archaeological highlights are discussed below.
The Durham Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund (ALSF) project was carried out as part of the National Mapping Programme. It formed part of a wider project, the Durham-Assessment of Archaeological Resource in Aggregate Areas project, and was undertaken as a partnership between Durham County Council (DCC) and Archaeological Research Services Ltd (ARS Ltd).
Settlement throughout history
Aerial survey of County Durham has proved particularly valuable for identifying settlement sites dating from prehistory to the present day. Notable highlights are the numerous Iron Age or Roman rectilinear ditched enclosures, representing early settlement. Dating of the majority of these sites was based on morphology alone as excavation evidence in the county is limited.
Interestingly, at the few rectilinear enclosed settlements that have been excavated, early phases represented by gullies or curvilinear ditches were dated to the Late Bronze Age date. On this basis, it is possible that any or all of the curvilinear enclosures identified and mapped from air photos as part of this project may have Bronze Age origins.
Aggregate extraction through history
An assessment of extractive industries in County Durham was also attempted in order to gauge their impact on the archaeological landscape. Aggregate extraction and coal mining are highly visible on air photographs, particularly in the region from the north-east to the south-west of the county, following the Magnesian Limestone and coal measures.
The smaller extractive coal workings, bell pits and quarries of post medieval date are the earliest industrial activities visible. These in turn make way for the large collieries and quarries of the 19th and 20th centuries with their extensive transport links including railways. Later vertical photography shows many collieries had been levelled in the latter part of the 20th century.
The images used on this page are copyright English Heritage unless specified otherwise. For further details of any photographs or other images and for copies of these, or the plans and reports related to the project please contact the English Heritage Archive.
For further information on a project or any other aspect of the work of the Aerial Survey team please contact us via email using the link above.
