Source/Archive record SEM341466 - Alderman’s Barrow Allotment, Exmoor: Interim Report on the Archaeological Monitoring of Peatland Restoration Works (April 2023)

The South West Peatland Partnership (SWPP) undertook archaeological monitoring of peatland restoration works at Alderman’s Barrow Allotment between November 2022 and March 2023. The work confirmed that peat within the site contains well preserved palaeoenvironmental remains, including the remnants of buried prehistoric woodland. Part of the trunk of a willow tree was found near the centre of the site, which has been dated to the early Neolithic (3940-3650 Cal BC). Several further fragments of trunks and larger branches of willow and alder trees were recovered from the base of the valley, which were dated to between the early and middle Bronze Age (2580-2350 Cal BC to 1500-1410 Cal BC). The remains found in the base of the valley are associated with a dense prehistoric wood layer, up to 0.5m thick, that resembles a ‘forest floor’ in places. The woodland seems to have disappeared by the late Bronze Age and has been preserved under up to 1.5m of peat with no clearly visible wood remains.