'Unique' Roman artefact on display at museum

5 hours ago

Alistair Binney,in Broadwayand

Alex McIntyre,West Midlands

News image — The bone box is believed to date back to the late Roman period

BBC A cuboid-shaped old box made from bone on display at a museum. It has a number of circles carved into it. It has a sliding lid which has been partially opened. — The bone box is believed to date back to the late Roman period

An artefact believed to date back to the late Roman period has gone on display as part of an exhibition chronicling thousands of years of a village's history.

A carved bone box was unearthed during an excavation at Milestone Ground in Broadway, Worcestershire, and archaeologists said they had never seen anything like it before.

On Saturday, the village's museum and art gallery launched its Buried Lives: Unearthing 8,000 Years of Broadway's History exhibition, with the bone box among the items on display.

Laura Griffin, of Worcestershire Archaeology, told BBC Hereford and Worcester: "The box is unique; I haven't found another example of it."

The bone box, which was carved from roe deer bone and features intricate circular patterns, was recovered from the grave of a young woman, and Jamie Wilkins, who led the excavation, described it as "extraordinary".

Some believe the find could offer new insight into the lives, beliefs and craftsmanship of the people who once occupied the north Cotswolds.

A woman with long brown hair and a dark blue top smiles as she stands in front of an exhibition display. — Archaeologist Laura Griffin says the Roman bone box is a "unique" find

The museum's exhibition features artefacts that cover periods including the Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Roman and Saxon.

Anona van Lawick, exhibition curator, said: "When these were first found, we didn't know they were going to come here. We knew how exciting it was for local residents of Broadway.

"To be able to bring them just 500 metres away from where they've been under the surface – some of these for 8,000 years – for the residents of Broadway, it's just been so exciting."

One item on display was believed to be even older – a stone palaeolithic core which could be up to 40,000 years old, according to van Lawick.

She said it would potentially have been used by early humans to carve or chip bits of flint from to make tools.

A long, large chunk of material in a glass display case at a museum exhibition. It has been placed on blue material and there are explanation cards behind it. — This palaeolithic core could be 40,000 years old, Anona van Lawick says

Griffin also highlighted a finely decorated beaker pot, which possibly dated back to between 3500 and 1500 BC.

"I'm a pottery specialist, so getting all this pottery in such good condition from all periods, right the way through into the Saxon period, has been incredible," she added.

Malcolm Rogers, chairman of trustees at Broadway Museum and Art Gallery, said the exhibition put the village and its people "in context".

"As I look at the display, it's beautifully lit, beautifully captured," he said.

"You can see the things in absolute detail. Some of the craftsmanship is quite amazing."

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