Roman Lode

Roman Lode near Simonsbath is an extensive and complex site of openworks and bell-shaped quarry pits, indicating that there was a long period of exploitation of iron deposits here.

Roman Lode, is a predominantly iron-rich ore deposit on Exmoor at Burcombe near Simonsbath. Archaeologists have excavated this 600 metre iron mining trench or openwork known as "Roman Lode" Roman Lode refers to a 600m long open mining work on the high moorland a few kilometres from Sherracombe. Largely undated, the site was definitely present in the 19th century when the Knight family, then the owners of Exmoor, started trial mining along its length. Excavations of a series of undulating ‘hummocks and hollows’, thought at first to have been the remains of ore sorting, revealed that they are, in fact, cut features and the result of mining and prospecting.

They have also uncovered a massive iron site near Brayford on the southern edge of Exmoor. Thousands of tons of metal was smelted at the site - far more than would have been needed locally. While the archaeologists do not necessarily believe that the name "Roman Lode" can be taken as evidence for Roman mining, the fact that the nearby smelting sites would have required a constant supply of good quality ore suggests that Roman Lode would have been a convenient source. Experts from Exeter University are trying to work out if the Roman army ran the operation. Another possibility is that it was traded with a local supplier A 20-strong team of archaeologists from the university has been working with local volunteers to excavate the site at Sherracombe Ford, between Simonsbath and South Molton. Solid blocks of slag weighing up to 20 kilos have been found, along with pottery fragments, which show much of the iron production took place between the second and third centuries AD. A number of furnaces have also been found.

Recorded iron ore production for the ‘Exmoor’ area in the 19th century was over 813,000 tons, at around 40 to 60% metal content. If we take in to account known working where we have no record of output levels, 19th century production was probably in excess of one million tons. The vast majority of which, over 723,000 tons, was mined on the Brendon Hills Roman Lode is an impressive monument to Exmoor’s industrial past; it is around 600 metres long and over 5 metres deep in places. The site was mined sometime before 1750 BC at the latest and potentially several hundred years earlier than that. Such an early date meant that, whoever was exploiting Roman Lode, was not there for the iron. So what interest did Bronze Age people have in the site? In the Bronze Age Roman Lode was probaly a highly visible, long ridge of quartz-rich rock. It is likely that the area was being exploited either for its copper (and flecks of copper ore have been found in some of the samples collected at the site) or that Roman Lode was a source of quartz a material that was commonly used in the construction of Bronze Age burial mounds across Exmoor.If Bronze Age people were mining for copper on Exmoor, and it is a big if, then this site is the only one of its kind and date so far found in south-west England and shows that the history of mineral exploitation on Exmoor can be pushed back another 2000 years

Since 2001 Exmoor National Park Authority has been working with the University of Exeter and the National Trust on a project to investigate the early iron industry on Exmoor. Exmoor Iron, which is funded by English Heritage, has been revealing new evidence for large scale iron production during the Roman period right across southern Exmoor; medieval iron smelting sites in the Barle valley have also been excavated. The project is re-assessing how important one of Exmoor's key natural resources has been over the last 2000 years. It is also giving new insights into Exmoor's past. As part of the field work for the Exmoor Iron project, Lee Bray from the University of Exeter has been leading a team of archaeologists in the exploration of a massive iron mining trench on land owned by Exmoor National Park Authority south of Simonsbath. The site is called 'Roman Lode', but archaeologists have long dismissed the 'Roman' name element as simply another word for 'old'. The discovery of a number of Roman iron smelting sites in the vicinity, however, has raised the question 'Is Roman Lode Roman?'

Whatever its origins, Roman Lode is an impressive monument to Exmoor's industrial past; it is around 600 metres long and over 5 metres deep in places. From 2001 to 2004 Lee Bray excavated at one end of Roman Lode where an area of bumps and hollows seemed to offer the best potential for dating the site. Fieldwork was carried out in routinely inclement weather (no matter what time of the year).
The excavations revealed a large area of disturbed ground; hollows had been dug down and the spoil from them had been dumped around. The hollows were too deep for the archaeologists to excavate safely, but are probably no more than 2-3 m deep.

Below the spoil from the pits and therefore older than them was an area of charcoal and burnt soil, perhaps the remains of a small hearth. The excavators judged that this hearth was used during the period of the earliest human activity at the site. Charcoal was collected from this hearth and was submitted for radiocarbon dating to Scottish Universities Research and Reactor Centre at Kirkbride. The dates were received back early in 2005 and surprised everyone connected with the Exmoor Iron project. The date of the charcoal in the hearth was identified as between 1950 and 1750 BC - the early Bronze Age.

This means that the hollows were mined sometime before 1750 BC at the latest and potentially several hundred years earlier than that. Such an early date meant that, whoever was exploiting Roman Lode, was not there for the iron. So what interest did Bronze Age people have in the site?

However, it seems probable that in the Bronze Age Roman Lode was in fact a highly visible, long ridge of quartz-rich rock. It is too early to say for sure, but it is likely that the area was being exploited either for its copper (and flecks of copper ore have been found in some of the samples collected at the site) or that Roman Lode was a source of quartz - a material that was commonly used in the construction of Bronze Age burial mounds across Exmoor. If Bronze Age people were mining for copper on Exmoor, and it is a big if, then this site is the only one of its kind and date so far found in south-west England and shows that the history of mineral exploitation on Exmoor can be pushed back another 2000 years as far as 2000 BC.

Contributed by: Kelvin Beer