Remains of castle foundPublished Date: 20 August 2009
History experts have uncovered what they believe could be remains of the only medieval stone castle in South Northamptonshire.
Archaeologists from Northamptonshire made the discovery at The Mount in Alderton, near Towcester, after they picked up where Time Team's archaeologists left off eight years ago.
Experts from the Channel 4 programme carried out excavation work at the site in 2001. But the team's digs are limited to three days and they only managed to scratch the surface of the history of the site, where work to build the long-since-vanished castle began soon after the Norman Conquest in 1066.
Tim Upson Smith, from Northamptonshire County Council's archaeological unit, supervised the three-week dig, and described the discovery of a substantial stone building and wall as "exciting".
He said: "We got the corner of a stone building which was on the edge of our excavation. We went looking for a timber castle and we discovered stone, which is really exciting from an archaeological point of view. It means the castle was in use longer than we thought and was developed.
"We are hoping to go back next year."
The dig finished on August 7, and due to funding and permission requirements, the dig could not go further to unearth more of the castle this time around, but they hope to discover even more about the site when they revisit it.
The site is owned by former Northamptonshire County Council member and history lover, Derek Batten.
He bought the scheduled ancient monument in 1998 after driving past the site and seeing a 'castle for sale' sign.
During the 2001 dig, the television experts found a 14th century buckle belonging to a knight, and the castle's original entrance.
The full article contains 290 words and appears in Northampton Chron & Echo newspaper.
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* Last Updated: 20 August 2009 9:01 AM
* Source: Northampton Chron & Echo
* Location: Northampton
http://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/news/Remains-of-castle-found.5570517.jp
