For forty years FoPH members have been digging into Pendle’s past. In its 40th year, well 2023 into 2024, we have been hunting for physical evidence of a cattle pool known as Brericar, one of the many Lancashire holdings, many within the Blackburn Hundred, of Queen Isabella (c.1295 to 22 August 1358), wife of King Edward II, mother and regent for Edward III.
Our field walks in the last twelve months have largely focused on the landscape around Upper White Lee. The Higham vaccary is next door to where we have been concentrating recently and we have done a few field walks that have looked at features within the vaccary.
On our field walks we have noted several features in the landscape that you would expect to find associated with a cattle pool. We have evidence of extensive and large-scale water management, a number of artificial platforms, field boundaries that have been out of use for centuries, and much, much more.
A geo-physical survey led to a spring 2024 dig that revealed evidence of wall bases as yet undated. In August 2024 we conducted a dig not far from the farmhouse that proved more productive and has raised many more questions whilst shining a light on the development of the site as a whole in the Post Medieval period. Large sherds of Midland Purple pottery have been found. This ware was in production from c1500 to c1700 AD, which correlates with a reused 1590s datestone in the nearby farmhouse and its most famous resident, Jonas Moore. It also means we have narrowed the gap to Isabella down to about 200 years. To put that into context, we have also unearthed some pieces of worked flint and chert which are over 6,000 years old. Recently there has been a third dig and further examination of the standing buildings. There has been an indoor meeting or two looking at the finds from the excavations and discussing their implications.
By way of variety, we also did walks above Sabden, at Sawley, and up to Water Meetings and beyond.
Going forward we will be continuing with the wider Pendle’s Hidden Valley Project as well as new explorations and further heritage discovery field walks in Pendle and nearby. Then there is further post excavation work to come, when we try and find out the stories behind the finds from the digs.
If you want to help prod about in Pendle’s past and re-write history, you are welcome to join us and help preserve it for the future.