Gloucestershire is one of Britain’s richest counties in terms of its archaeological heritage.
Scattered across the high blue hills of the Cotswolds,
along the valleys of thee Severn, Avon and Wye,
and through the Forest of Dean
is a wealth of sites and monuments that allows us to understand
the many prehistoric communities who once lived, worked and died there.
From the camps and caves occupied by hunter-gatherer groups visiting
the area during the last Ice Age,
through the long barrows and camps of the first farmers,
to the massive hillforts and enclosures built by Celtic chieftains
in the centuries before the Roman Conquest,
this book charts the story of the landscape and its inhabitants
over a period spanning more than half a million years.
Drawing on the results of excavations at familiar landmarks
such as King Arthur’s Cave, Belas Knap, Hetty Pegler’s Tump
and Uley Bury, the story is enriched by the many new and remarkable discoveries
made in recent decades during quarrying and the construction of new roads, houses and factories.
Originally published in 1987,
this fully updated and expanded second edition will be of interest to
local residents, visitors, and those with an interest and love of the county.
