The Iron Age Settlement at Warbreck: Part Three

Okay…if you’ve missed the last fortnight’s postings, or would just like to recap on what we’d written, make sure to check out the articles immediately below this one before reading further. (Actually, if they're not there, which they probably aren't, then check in the 'Previous Articles' menu on the right hand side bar.) We reckon we’ve got a fairly strong argument for an Iron Age settlement on the top of Knowle Hill going here although, of course, the chances for any excavation work being conducted in Knowle Hill’s municipal flowerbeds in the near future are somewhat remote.

Anyhow, intrigued by the possibilities thrown up by our research, in January 2007 Michelle took a look at Knowle Hill for herself. As it transpired, the previous week a violent storm had uprooted the tree shown in the illustration below. (Don’t ask us where the original photograph is. Our gas-powered computer likes to hide important files from us.)

In being blown over, the tree roots had torn a large divot from the ground, revealing a layer of burnt soil beneath, along with the fragment of discarded flint shown below.

All right…so it’s not the most exciting find ever perhaps. It’s not a spearhead, or a palstave, or an Iron Age skull admittedly. However, flint isn’t native to Lancashire, so even small amounts discovered at depths of two to three feet are an indication of prehistoric activity.
Physical evidence then, perhaps, of the Iron Age settlement on the hill’s summit?
We’ll let our readers weigh up the arguments and reach their own conclusions on that particular score, and leave you instead with one last map showing the possible locations of all the historical items mentioned in this article to help you decide.