Since then the Archaeological Society has raised enough money to carry out several excavations and found furnace and bloomery sites, dated to the C12th by carbon dating on charcoal.     Several other geophysical techniques have been used to find sites, particularly magnetic readings, which pick up the waste iron and the furnaces themselves.     Rob Vernon, the geophysical expert at Bradford University Archaeological Department, which has been heavily involved in the investigation, is coming to talk to the Huddersfield Geology Group on Monday December 6th.

Our interest in the site is in the origin of the iron ore.    The site was used for several hundred years so iron ore must have been needed in large amounts to produce workable iron, as well as the many waste tips in the woods.     While there are some iron nodules in the local shales there does not seem to be enough to sustain a large ironworks for several centuries.     Perhaps there were social and economic reasons for siting an industrial complex in that position, rather than the availability of the heaviest raw material.

Thanks to Granville for a very interesting morning.     We will watch the Huddersfield Examiner for more news about excavations and how the site is going to be developed for education and further research.