A newly discovered Iron Age town is shedding light on the religious beliefs of the ancient Celts.
Archaeologists have unearthed numerous hybrid animals from a site dubbed Duropolis near Winterborne Kingston in Dorset, which were carefully created by the ancient people over 2,000 years ago and buried in store pits beneath their houses.
The ‘monsters’ include sheep with an extra head and a cow with a horse’s head, which were probably made to placate the gods.
Miles Russell, co-director of the Big Dig, told MailOnline that the animal parts were carefully placed in storage pits between seven and 10 ft (two and three metres) deep that were usually used for storing grain and other important supplies beneath the entrance of houses.
‘Iron Age inhabitants placed these strange deposits in the bottom [of the pits], before back-filling them,’ he said. ‘It’s as if they were putting a gift back like a "thank you".’
So far archaeologists from the University of Bournemouth have studied 122 pits at the site and each one has revealed something.
Ancient MONSTER graveyard unearthed: Celts created hideous beasts using dead animal parts as offerings to the gods
Remains discovered at Iron Age site near Winterborne Kingston, Dorset
Hybrid animals were created in the Iron Age and buried in storage pits beneath their roundhouses, probably as an offering to the gods
They include sheep with extra heads and cows with horses' legs
Remains include one of a female who was probably sacrificed, perhaps confirming Roman accounts of bloodthirsty Celtic rituals
By Sarah Griffiths for MailOnline
13 July 2015
Daily Mail
A newly discovered Iron Age town is shedding light on the religious beliefs of the ancient Celts.
Archaeologists have unearthed numerous hybrid animals from a site dubbed Duropolis near Winterborne Kingston in Dorset, which were carefully created by the ancient people over 2,000 years ago and buried in store pits beneath their houses.
The ‘monsters’ include sheep with an extra head and a cow with a horse’s head, which were probably made to placate the gods.
Archaeologists have unearthed numerous hybrid animals from the site dubbed Duropolis near Winterborne Kingston in Dorset, which were carefully created by the ancient people and buried in store pits beneath their houses. This image shows sheep bones with a cow's head
Miles Russell, co-director of the Big Dig, told MailOnline that the animal parts were carefully placed in storage pits between seven and 10 ft (two and three metres) deep that were usually used for storing grain and other important supplies beneath the entrance of houses.
‘Iron Age inhabitants placed these strange deposits in the bottom [of the pits], before back-filling them,’ he said. ‘It’s as if they were putting a gift back like a "thank you".’
So far archaeologists from the University of Bournemouth have studied 122 pits at the site and each one has revealed something.
Stuff of nightmares: While the bodies of pigs, dogs and sheep were generally left intact with extra parts added (such as a bull's head added to a sheep's body, illustrated), those of horses and cows were more mixed up
Mike Russell, co-director of the Big Dig, told MailOnline that the animal parts were carefully placed in storage pits between two and three metres deep that were usually used for storing grain and other important supplies beneath the entrance of houses. This image shows the excavation of a pig burial
Moo-neigh? The hybrids include cow with a horse’s legs (illustrated), a sheep with a bull’s head placed at its rear end and a horse with a cow’s horn protruding from its forehead.
‘Such practices have been hinted at elsewhere in the UK but not at this intensity,’ he said.
The hybrids include cow with a horse’s legs, a sheep with a bull’s head placed at its rear end and a horse with a cow’s horn protruding from its forehead, The Independent reported.
While the bodies of pigs, dogs and sheep were generally left intact with extra parts added, those of horses and cows tend to be more mixed up.
For example, the team has found two examples of a horse’s lower jaw bone added to a jawless cow’s skull.
Dr Russell explained that the people would have sacrificed valuable animals and butchered them, placing chunks of their bodies and limbs next to each other in the pits to create the hybrids ‘presumably as some kind of offering’.
In one pit, archaeologists found a female skeleton bearing marks suggesting she was sacrificed. She was buried on a bed of animals including cattle, sheep, a dog and a horse, which had been arranged to mirror her own position so that her head rested on theirs, for example (shown)
Because so many examples of hybrid animals have been found, it’s possible the offerings were an annual event, Dr Russell explained, to ensure a good or better harvest next year. An example of one of finds is shown - an illustration of a horse with a cow's horn added to its forehead
Dorset
Archaeologists have unearthed numerous hybrid animals from a site dubbed Duropolis near Winterborne Kingston in Dorset (shaded red on this map)
Dr Russell explained that the people would have sacrificed valuable animals and butchered them, placing chunks of their bodies and limbs next to each other in the pits to create the hybrids ‘presumably as some kind of offering’. This photo shows a horse skull with cow body parts
‘In our minds, it’s bizarre and wasteful food-wise,’ he said, but demonstrates the importance of the ritual.
It’s not known whether the animals were stitched together or not, because organic material such as string would not survive in the ground for over 2,000 years.
In one particularly unusual pit, archaeologists found a female skeleton bearing marks suggesting she was sacrificed.
She was buried on a bed of animals including cattle, sheep, a dog and a horse, which had been arranged to mirror her own position so that her head rested on theirs, for example.
Examples of Celtic human sacrifices are rare and there is no written documentary evidence from the people, but the Romans complained of the practice when they first invaded Britain in 55BC.
While it’s unknown what the purpose of the unusual sacrifices was exactly, Dr Russell said: ‘Perhaps they [the Iron Age people] were asking for good crops or health for their animals.’
Because so many examples have been found, it’s possible the offerings were an annual event, he explained, to ensure a good or better harvest the following year.
Relatively little is known about the religious beliefs of this period and the collection of discoveries goes some way to filling in gaps.
‘To find leftover religious practice is extremely rare,’ and evidence of a human sacrifice suggests there may be some truth in Roman reports, Dr Russell explained.
It’s also possible that evidence of hybrid creatures means that like other ancient civilisations, the Celts had myths of monstrous animals too.
Video: Bournemouth Uni students uncover unknown Iron Age town
He told The Independent: ‘The sacrifice of so many animals and the unusual treatment of their bones is likely to shed totally new light on Iron Age belief systems - and may suggest that the Ancient Britons had beliefs or mythologies which involved hybredized animals, just as the ancient Greeks had.’
‘Most ancient cultures have hybrid animals,’ Dr Russell said. ‘The Celts didn’t leave any literary evidence so we can’t say [if they did too].’
But the experimental horse/cow hybrids may suggest the Celts had a horse/cow god, he added.
Based on the evidence unearthed so far and a geophysical survey, the team of archaeologists believe the settlement was made up of between 150 and 200 round houses and that the town flourished from 100 BC to 10BC.
The township is one of the largest ever discovered in Britain. It’s thought the inhabitants were members of an early version of ancient Dorset’s Durotriges tribe.
As well as the macabre pits and 16 Iron Age round houses, the experts also found evidence of an Iron Age metalworks and pottery.
Dr Russell said: ‘We’ve exposed remains of 16 roundhouses in the two trenches we’ve dug.
Based on the evidence unearthed so far and a geophysical survey, the team of archaeologists believe the settlement was made up of between 150 and 200 round houses. A circular storage pit bearing the bones of three sacrificed pigs is shown
It’s possible that evidence of hybrid creatures means that like other ancient civilisations, the Celts had myths of monstrous animals too. The remains of one sheep with the legs of another is shown
‘They are pre-Roman house structures, the last that inhabitants would have been living in before the Romans arrived. We know that there are around 200 of these across this area, so we’ve got ourselves a prehistoric town or proto-urban settlement.
‘What we’ve discovered is extremely significant for the whole of Southern Britain because in the past archaeologists have tended to look at really obvious sites, like the big hill-fort of Maiden Castle, near Dorchester.
‘What we have here is an extensive open settlement, not a hill fort, so it wasn’t visible as a settlement from the earthwork on the landscape. It is one of the earliest and largest open settlements in Britain.’
Paul Cheetham, a co-director on the dig, added: ‘What this suggests is that there are other big centres of occupation before the Roman arrival, this is a big open settlement, probably one of the first that the Romans encountered when they arrived.
‘It exposes the myth that everyone lived in protected hill forts – these inhabitants lived in this fertile farmland, away from the traditional hill forts we are all used to hearing about.’
Experimental horse/cow hybrids may suggest the Celts had a horse/cow god, Dr Russell said, although it's impossible to know because they left no written evidence. Thsi image shows the remains of a cow skull with a horse jaw
THE TOWN OF DUROPOLIS
The site, dubbed Duropolis, lay near Winterborne Kingston in Dorset.
The settlement was made up of between 150 and 200 round houses.
The town flourished between 100 and 10BC.
It's one of the largest ever discovered in Britain and it's thought the inhabitants were members of an early version of ancient Dorset's Durotriges tribe.
So far 16 Iron Age houses have been excavated and some 122 storage pits holding the bones of sacrificed animals have been identified.
They've also found evidence of metalworks and pottery.
The town was an extensive open settlement, not a hill fort - one of the earliest and largest open settlements in Britain.
The experts said its discovery exposes the myth that everyone lived in protected hill forts before the Roman occupation.
'These inhabitants lived in this fertile farmland, away from the traditional hill forts we are all used to hearing about,' they said.
Archaeologists have unearthed numerous hybrid animals from a site dubbed Duropolis near Winterborne Kingston in Dorset, which were carefully created by the ancient people over 2,000 years ago and buried in store pits beneath their houses.
The ‘monsters’ include sheep with an extra head and a cow with a horse’s head, which were probably made to placate the gods.
Miles Russell, co-director of the Big Dig, told MailOnline that the animal parts were carefully placed in storage pits between seven and 10 ft (two and three metres) deep that were usually used for storing grain and other important supplies beneath the entrance of houses.
‘Iron Age inhabitants placed these strange deposits in the bottom [of the pits], before back-filling them,’ he said. ‘It’s as if they were putting a gift back like a "thank you".’
So far archaeologists from the University of Bournemouth have studied 122 pits at the site and each one has revealed something.
Ancient MONSTER graveyard unearthed: Celts created hideous beasts using dead animal parts as offerings to the gods
Remains discovered at Iron Age site near Winterborne Kingston, Dorset
Hybrid animals were created in the Iron Age and buried in storage pits beneath their roundhouses, probably as an offering to the gods
They include sheep with extra heads and cows with horses' legs
Remains include one of a female who was probably sacrificed, perhaps confirming Roman accounts of bloodthirsty Celtic rituals
By Sarah Griffiths for MailOnline
13 July 2015
Daily Mail
A newly discovered Iron Age town is shedding light on the religious beliefs of the ancient Celts.
Archaeologists have unearthed numerous hybrid animals from a site dubbed Duropolis near Winterborne Kingston in Dorset, which were carefully created by the ancient people over 2,000 years ago and buried in store pits beneath their houses.
The ‘monsters’ include sheep with an extra head and a cow with a horse’s head, which were probably made to placate the gods.
Archaeologists have unearthed numerous hybrid animals from the site dubbed Duropolis near Winterborne Kingston in Dorset, which were carefully created by the ancient people and buried in store pits beneath their houses. This image shows sheep bones with a cow's head
Miles Russell, co-director of the Big Dig, told MailOnline that the animal parts were carefully placed in storage pits between seven and 10 ft (two and three metres) deep that were usually used for storing grain and other important supplies beneath the entrance of houses.
‘Iron Age inhabitants placed these strange deposits in the bottom [of the pits], before back-filling them,’ he said. ‘It’s as if they were putting a gift back like a "thank you".’
So far archaeologists from the University of Bournemouth have studied 122 pits at the site and each one has revealed something.
Stuff of nightmares: While the bodies of pigs, dogs and sheep were generally left intact with extra parts added (such as a bull's head added to a sheep's body, illustrated), those of horses and cows were more mixed up
Mike Russell, co-director of the Big Dig, told MailOnline that the animal parts were carefully placed in storage pits between two and three metres deep that were usually used for storing grain and other important supplies beneath the entrance of houses. This image shows the excavation of a pig burial
Moo-neigh? The hybrids include cow with a horse’s legs (illustrated), a sheep with a bull’s head placed at its rear end and a horse with a cow’s horn protruding from its forehead.
‘Such practices have been hinted at elsewhere in the UK but not at this intensity,’ he said.
The hybrids include cow with a horse’s legs, a sheep with a bull’s head placed at its rear end and a horse with a cow’s horn protruding from its forehead, The Independent reported.
While the bodies of pigs, dogs and sheep were generally left intact with extra parts added, those of horses and cows tend to be more mixed up.
For example, the team has found two examples of a horse’s lower jaw bone added to a jawless cow’s skull.
Dr Russell explained that the people would have sacrificed valuable animals and butchered them, placing chunks of their bodies and limbs next to each other in the pits to create the hybrids ‘presumably as some kind of offering’.
In one pit, archaeologists found a female skeleton bearing marks suggesting she was sacrificed. She was buried on a bed of animals including cattle, sheep, a dog and a horse, which had been arranged to mirror her own position so that her head rested on theirs, for example (shown)
Because so many examples of hybrid animals have been found, it’s possible the offerings were an annual event, Dr Russell explained, to ensure a good or better harvest next year. An example of one of finds is shown - an illustration of a horse with a cow's horn added to its forehead
Dorset
Archaeologists have unearthed numerous hybrid animals from a site dubbed Duropolis near Winterborne Kingston in Dorset (shaded red on this map)
Dr Russell explained that the people would have sacrificed valuable animals and butchered them, placing chunks of their bodies and limbs next to each other in the pits to create the hybrids ‘presumably as some kind of offering’. This photo shows a horse skull with cow body parts
‘In our minds, it’s bizarre and wasteful food-wise,’ he said, but demonstrates the importance of the ritual.
It’s not known whether the animals were stitched together or not, because organic material such as string would not survive in the ground for over 2,000 years.
In one particularly unusual pit, archaeologists found a female skeleton bearing marks suggesting she was sacrificed.
She was buried on a bed of animals including cattle, sheep, a dog and a horse, which had been arranged to mirror her own position so that her head rested on theirs, for example.
Examples of Celtic human sacrifices are rare and there is no written documentary evidence from the people, but the Romans complained of the practice when they first invaded Britain in 55BC.
While it’s unknown what the purpose of the unusual sacrifices was exactly, Dr Russell said: ‘Perhaps they [the Iron Age people] were asking for good crops or health for their animals.’
Because so many examples have been found, it’s possible the offerings were an annual event, he explained, to ensure a good or better harvest the following year.
Relatively little is known about the religious beliefs of this period and the collection of discoveries goes some way to filling in gaps.
‘To find leftover religious practice is extremely rare,’ and evidence of a human sacrifice suggests there may be some truth in Roman reports, Dr Russell explained.
It’s also possible that evidence of hybrid creatures means that like other ancient civilisations, the Celts had myths of monstrous animals too.
Video: Bournemouth Uni students uncover unknown Iron Age town
He told The Independent: ‘The sacrifice of so many animals and the unusual treatment of their bones is likely to shed totally new light on Iron Age belief systems - and may suggest that the Ancient Britons had beliefs or mythologies which involved hybredized animals, just as the ancient Greeks had.’
‘Most ancient cultures have hybrid animals,’ Dr Russell said. ‘The Celts didn’t leave any literary evidence so we can’t say [if they did too].’
But the experimental horse/cow hybrids may suggest the Celts had a horse/cow god, he added.
Based on the evidence unearthed so far and a geophysical survey, the team of archaeologists believe the settlement was made up of between 150 and 200 round houses and that the town flourished from 100 BC to 10BC.
The township is one of the largest ever discovered in Britain. It’s thought the inhabitants were members of an early version of ancient Dorset’s Durotriges tribe.
As well as the macabre pits and 16 Iron Age round houses, the experts also found evidence of an Iron Age metalworks and pottery.
Dr Russell said: ‘We’ve exposed remains of 16 roundhouses in the two trenches we’ve dug.
Based on the evidence unearthed so far and a geophysical survey, the team of archaeologists believe the settlement was made up of between 150 and 200 round houses. A circular storage pit bearing the bones of three sacrificed pigs is shown
It’s possible that evidence of hybrid creatures means that like other ancient civilisations, the Celts had myths of monstrous animals too. The remains of one sheep with the legs of another is shown
‘They are pre-Roman house structures, the last that inhabitants would have been living in before the Romans arrived. We know that there are around 200 of these across this area, so we’ve got ourselves a prehistoric town or proto-urban settlement.
‘What we’ve discovered is extremely significant for the whole of Southern Britain because in the past archaeologists have tended to look at really obvious sites, like the big hill-fort of Maiden Castle, near Dorchester.
‘What we have here is an extensive open settlement, not a hill fort, so it wasn’t visible as a settlement from the earthwork on the landscape. It is one of the earliest and largest open settlements in Britain.’
Paul Cheetham, a co-director on the dig, added: ‘What this suggests is that there are other big centres of occupation before the Roman arrival, this is a big open settlement, probably one of the first that the Romans encountered when they arrived.
‘It exposes the myth that everyone lived in protected hill forts – these inhabitants lived in this fertile farmland, away from the traditional hill forts we are all used to hearing about.’
Experimental horse/cow hybrids may suggest the Celts had a horse/cow god, Dr Russell said, although it's impossible to know because they left no written evidence. Thsi image shows the remains of a cow skull with a horse jaw
THE TOWN OF DUROPOLIS
The site, dubbed Duropolis, lay near Winterborne Kingston in Dorset.
The settlement was made up of between 150 and 200 round houses.
The town flourished between 100 and 10BC.
It's one of the largest ever discovered in Britain and it's thought the inhabitants were members of an early version of ancient Dorset's Durotriges tribe.
So far 16 Iron Age houses have been excavated and some 122 storage pits holding the bones of sacrificed animals have been identified.
They've also found evidence of metalworks and pottery.
The town was an extensive open settlement, not a hill fort - one of the earliest and largest open settlements in Britain.
The experts said its discovery exposes the myth that everyone lived in protected hill forts before the Roman occupation.
'These inhabitants lived in this fertile farmland, away from the traditional hill forts we are all used to hearing about,' they said.
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