Habitats and Hillforts Delamere site dig to continue for three weeks

Sep 2 2010 Chester Chronicle

AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL dig exploring Delamere’s Iron Age history has been given a three-week extension.

The Habitats and Hillforts project at Eddisbury Hill will continue as staff and volunteers try to uncover the true size of the hillfort entrance.

Project officer Dan Garner said: “We did some trenches at Helsby Hill in April and members of the local parish council there were asking if we had to fill them in – people like the fact that archaeological remains are on view.

“But part of the agreement with English Heritage is that we fill them in when we’ve finished, mainly because that’s the best way to preserve what we find.

“If we leave it on display, we would have to consolidate it and protect it from the elements.

“This is an expensive process.

“If we decide to leave the entrance to the hillfort on long-term display, it would still have to be filled in while we decided what to do and how.

“One winter would have a devastating effect up here.”

The overall aim of the project is to conserve and enhance the string of six historically important Iron Age hillforts along the sandstone ridge.

New interpretation boards, self-guide walk leaflets and a roving exhibition will be put together at the end of the project.

The group is also busy recording its finds so far.

“In terms of project highlights, probably the best is yet to come,” added Dan.

“It will be the results of the excavation work, and not just here but at Helsby and Woodhouse, that will put the icing on the cake because we will have dates to put to the hillforts instead of just saying iron age.”