Windmill Hill Causewayed Enclosure, Avebury, Wiltshire
Windmill Hill is a Neolithic causewayed enclosure. It is part of a landscape that includes an early prehistoric field system and group of eight Early Bronze Age round barrows. It is on a hill north west of Avebury Stone Circle. It has 3 sets of banks and ditches. The ditches are interrupted by causeways. These are the gaps between each section of ditch. Radio-carbon dates tell us that the enclosure was in use from about 3000BC to around 2500BC. The site was excavated by H.G.O Kendall in 1922-3, Alexander Keiller in 1925-9, I. F Smith in 1957 and A. Whittle in 1990. The finds uncovered included Neolithic flint artefacts such as arrowheads, axe-heads, a sickle blade and scrapers. Numerous animal bones and skulls as well as 'ceremonial chalk cups' were also found. A type of Neolithic pottery found on sites across Wessex was first identified here and has hence taken the name of the site: Windmill Hill type pottery. This site is now in the care of English Heritage (2010). Read detailed archaeological description.
Location
Wiltshire AveburyPeriod
Prehistoric (to AD42)Themes
