Wiltshire
Metal detecting in Swindon.
The Ridgeway corner of Wiltshire — Liddington Castle, the Ermin Street corridor and open downland farms. We've recorded 17 digs here. Locations are shown approximately, out of respect for the landowners and the ground we're trusted with.
The land around Swindon
East of Swindon the land rises sharply onto the Marlborough Downs. Wanborough, Liddington, Bishopstone and Chiseldon sit along that scarp, with big arable fields on the tops and spring-line villages beneath. The Ridgeway runs along the crest.
What's underfoot
Wanborough was the Roman settlement of Durocornovium on Ermin Street, and Liddington Castle is a major Iron Age hillfort overlooking the whole district. That combination — a trunk road, a hillfort and continuous farming since — produces a consistently strong Roman and medieval record.
How we search here
Chalk downland, well drained and easy to cover, with occasional greensand at the foot of the scarp. Digs run midweek by written agreement with the landowner. We meet in the morning, spread out across the permission and search until mid-afternoon, refilling every hole as we go.
We have searched ground near Wanborough, Liddington, Bishopstone, Chiseldon and South Swindon.
We have 17 recorded digs in the Swindon district, spread across 5 parishes, part of 239+ digs across Wiltshire. Every member works to the NCMD Code of Conduct, and finds of note are reported to the Portable Antiquities Scheme through our local Finds Liaison Officer.
Significant Finds
No published finds from Swindon yet.
Surveys in this district are ongoing, and records still working through the Portable Antiquities Scheme are not published here until they're released. In the meantime you can browse everything we've recorded elsewhere.
Browse the full finds gallery →