Road Workers Discover Roman Coins And More While Building A New Bypass

One of the more interesting things about any new construction in some parts of Europe is that often when they dig into the ground for construction, they uncover something ancient. For example, while road crews were working on the future A120 Little Hadham bypass site in Hertfordshire, they made a very interesting discovery. While digging, the crews discovered the foundations of Iron Age houses and some Roman coins.

An archaeological dig was begun at the site in 2019 after surveys suggested prehistoric and Roman Roman remains were likely to be found at the location. The discoveries are hoped to shed insight into what life was like 2000 years ago. Among the discoveries made were the foundations of Iron Age houses dating back to 300 BC.

Roman remains discovered at the site dated back to the first and fourth centuries A.D. Also discovered during the dig was a small cemetery that housed the remains of 16 people who were cremated and four who were buried whole.

In all, 72 bronze Roman coins were discovered going back to between 330 and 348 A.D. One of the more interesting discoveries of a mundane object used in the daily lives of ancient Romans was the discovery of a corn dryer. What's even more exciting is that while the structure of the corn dryer was discovered, there were also preserved plant remains inside.

Plant remains are particularly exciting to archaeologists as they can shed light on how crops were farmed in the distant past. The new road bypass is expected to be completed this winter. It's unclear how long the archaeological digs will continue or if researchers have completed their dig.