Iron Age hoards in Yorkshire reveal first evidence of four-wheeled wagons in Britain

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Site mentioned

📍 Melenby

Iron Age hoards in Melsonby, North Yorkshire: 950+ objects, 75% wagon parts! First definitive evidence of four-wheeled wagons in Britain, not chariots. Dating 1st century BC-AD. Iron tires, brackets, kingpins, steering mechanisms. Coral & glass on harness fittings. Discovered near ancient royal site at Stanwick by archaeologists including lead researcher Dr. Johnzd.

Key facts:

- Peter Heads discovered hoards with metal detector in Melsonby, North Yorkshire in 2021

- Over 950 objects found in two separate hoards, approximately 300 whole objects

- About three-quarters of items were vehicle parts from four-wheeled wagons

- Vehicle items included iron tires, brackets, lynch pins, yoke fittings, kingpins, bolts, and rain rings

- Radiocarbon dating places hoards in late 1st century BC to early 1st century AD

Key facts

  • Peter Heds discovered hoards with metal detector in Melenby, North Yorkshire in 2021
  • Over 950 objects found in two separate hoards, approximately 300 whole objects
  • About three-quarters of items were vehicle parts from four-wheeled wagons
  • Vehicle items included iron tires, brackets, lynch pins, yoke fittings, kingpins, bolts, and rain rings
  • Radiocarbon dating places hoards in late 1st century BC to early 1st century AD
  • Items deliberately dismantled, damaged, and deposited in ditches
  • Copper alloy and iron composition; coral and glass adornments on harness fittings well-preserved
  • Minimum of seven wagons represented in assemblage
  • Kingpins essential for steering mechanism indicate wagons, not chariots
  • First definitive evidence of four-wheeled vehicles in Britain
  • Publication in Journal of Antiquity by Durham University team led by Tim Moore

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Sources

Two buried Iron Age hoards reveal first evidence for four-wheeled ...phys.org
In 2021, a man named Peter Heads made a fascinating discovery while using his metal detector in Melsonby, North Yorkshire in the UK.
Melsonby Hoard - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
... Iron Age and Mediterranean styles. 28 iron tyres provided evidence for the use of four-wheeled wagons as well as two-wheeled chariots, at least seven ...
Melsonby Hoard shows four-wheeled wagons existed in Iron Age ...jpost.com
Over 800 artifacts were found at the site, including 28 iron wheel-rims and U-shaped iron brackets, which researchers claim point to the ...
Seven Wagons in a Ditch: The Melsonby Iron Age Hoardsanthropology.net
Two Late Iron Age metalwork deposits from North Yorkshire offer the first evidence for four-wheeled wagons in Britain, and raise harder ...
First of its kind wagon evidence uncovered in massive Iron Age ...foxnews.com
The remains of the wagons were found among 950 metal objects, which also included vehicle parts and harness fittings for horses. The area "is ...
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