Archaeology
Archaeology is best defined as the study of our ancestors and their cultures through the detailed investigation of material remains and environmental data. Learning about past peoples and their culture helps us to understand how our own culture has developed from these ancestors, making us who we are today.
The New Forest has a rich and varied history of human interaction extending back some 13,000 years. This evidence can still be found within the New Forest National Park boundary and has been influential in shaping the landscape we see today. It is this legacy from the past that helps make the National Park such a special place.
The New Forest National Park Authority has a duty to conserve and enhance this historic environment for everybody. Although there has been a long and continuing local tradition of archaeological and historical research, some parts of the National Park have seen less research compared to other areas of the country.
Current archaeological surveys are identifying as many as two new sites per hectare of enclosed landscape surveyed and as few as one new site per 23 hectares on unenclosed heath land landscapes . If this is expanded to the rest of the Park there is potential for up to 63,000 undiscovered sites and landscape features still to be recorded.
You can find out more about the work of Authority archaeologists and the projects being undertaken by visiting the Terrestrial (land) and Coastal Archaeology pages.
