While the hoard is being washed and counted at the British Museum, over here we are keen to find out more about the site in which it was found. So a geophysical survey was carried out on the field today. This is a non-invasive type of survey often used by archaeologists to build up a picture of archaeological features below the surface of the ground (on this occasion by using a fluxgate magnometer to measure magnetic anomalies). A company called Geophysical Surveys Bradford (GSB), were employed to carry out the survey and me and Dave arranged to meet them on site.

However, their preliminary findings showed virtually nothing! Apparently they detected one or two anomalies, but nothing that you wouldn’t expect in your average field. This didn’t come as much of a surprise to be honest as, although there is evidence of Roman occupation in the surrounding region, Dave tells me he’s found very little apart from the two hoards in the field despite a thorough search.

Although we were slightly disappointed by these results, they still help us to build up a picture of the original landscape in which the hoard was buried. So we now know that the hoards weren’t buried next to a settlement, but in the middle of nowhere!