NEOLITHIC & BRONZE AGE (PART 2 OF 4)
The Borough of Runnymede has a long and rich history, dating back many thousands of years. The Neolithic era, or “new Stone Age” (4,500-1700 BCE), is a time where archaeological evidence starts to be more readily available, giving a more detailed look at the lives of those who called this area home. It is at this time that evidence of ritual worship starts to be discovered, and whilst there are no stone circles in Surrey there are several interesting finds in the North West Surrey area. Just the other side of the Thames from the borough, at Stanwell, the presence of a cursus has been uncovered. These prehistoric earthworks consist of parallel ditches believed to mark out a ceremonial procession route.
More prevalent across Britain are Neolithic burial mound earthworks, or long barrows, although only one has been positively identified in Surrey at Badshot Lea. Whilst the precise nature of the practices at these sites remains speculation, they do indicate something about society at the time. The creation of earthworks was a major undertaking requiring a moderately large workforce, and the motivation to dig them. This implies a society which was not only increased in numbers but was also structured as these Neolithic monuments were time-consuming to create and reserved for only the tribal leaders.
Unlike in earlier times, tribes had ceased to be nomadic but there was still movement across the area. This is evident in the similarity of monuments and tools across the country. Trading implements clearly took place, as over half the stone axes found in Surrey whose source is known came from Cornwall, whilst other stone axes originated in the Lake District, North Wales and from across the Continent. The Thames was part of a major trade route resulting in a new style of tools arriving in Britain c.8000 BCE. The Stone Age was coming to an end as flint and wooden tools gave way to those made of bronze.
By the time the Bronze Age began c.2500 BCE the inhabitants of Surrey were increasing, and human activity was beginning to leave its mark on the land. The heathlands we have in today’s borough at Chobham Common were created by our ancestors clearing the natural vegetation and trees to farm the area. The soil, exposed to the elements and intensively farmed over the centuries, became poor and acidic as the nutrients leeched out and scrubland plants took over. The reduction in soil quality over time would result in early Bronze Age communities needed to move to better growing conditions to maintain a steady food supply for their growing population.
For some time, archaeologists and anthropologists have credited this increase in population partially to an influx of people from the Continent, bringing with them new types of pottery and tools. However, it is now thought that these innovations arrived more through trade than invasion. The emergence of metalwork is tangible evidence of new cultural influences, and slight differences in the items produced across different parts of Surrey show the extent of the territories held by local tribes.
At Runnymede, where the M25 crosses the Thames near Egham, a Bronze Age trading post was discovered in the late 1970s/early 1980s. Given the concentration of structures, the site which covered approximately two hectares (5 acres), was clearly a busy trading post, maybe even the main centre for the region. It was perfectly positioned to take advantage of being on an island between two main streams of the Thames, allowing for the construction of a wharf as indicated by the discovery of wooden stakes lining the old riverbank on which the landing platform would have sat. The amount of finds in the area are testament to its importance, with the large number of antler cheek pieces for horse bridles suggesting that they were exported along the Thames.
Further evidence of Bronze Age trade can be found in the tools discovered in buried hoards such as that from Petters Sports Field and The Avenue, Egham. The very fact that bronze was used shows the raw materials needed to make it were being traded – copper from Cornwall and North Wales; tin from Devon. Producing bronze and using it to manufacture objects requires a high level of skill. Initially metalworkers replicated the tools and weapons they were used to in bronze, but over time they created more sophisticated version with more efficient cutting blades and improved handles for ease of use. Analysis of the metal in local finds such as the Petters Sport Field hoard show that smiths were recycling metal from outside of the era, specifically northern France, and melting it down with other metals to recast.
Elsewhere in the Borough there is little evidence other trade but there is evidence of how the residents lived, and died. Towards the end of the Neolithic period and into the early Bronze Age the use of circular burial mounds began to be more commonly used. There were two different types of round barrows; those with higher mounds known as bell barrows were the preserve of male tribal leaders, whereas the flatter disc barrows were used for female elite.
At Longcross there is evidence of bowl barrows, the most common type of circular burial mound. Three mounds were mentioned in the 13th century Chertsey Abbey charter although there are other possible sites, much destroyed over the centuries.
So who were these Bronze Age ancestors who venerated their dead with lavish burial mounds? Where did they live? The best evidence of houses is found at Petters Sport Field where rings of post-holes mark the foundations of two complete hut circles and sections of others. One of hut circles has a central area of burnt gravel, presumably remains of a hearth, whilst the other had porched entrance which appears to have been rebuilt over time. Constructed using wattle and daub, it is not surprising that the buildings do not stand today, but the site shows evidence that it was abandoned, and the structures taken down and taken away. The move away might have been caused by the flight being flooded, or maybe because of increased pressure on resources forced the inhabitants to move, and by the end of the Bronze Age defended sites begin to appear probably in response to these factors and the ever increase in the population.