A Heap of Rocks!

Background

When finding the bones that I blipped yesterday I also found these rocks. I could easily have discarded them as being of no interest but I'd decided to keep them as examples of what you come across when excavating. Added to which I knew that they weren't the kind of rocks that are found in our garden, on the surface, today.

Description

All that you see in this heap are similar. They were originally smooth, large "pebbles" that have cracked. I didn't find one example intact. Some are reddened. Even whilst removing them from the ground I hoped they were significant.

The Practical Use

When the pottery sherds were identified for me as of the Iron Age period these cracked rocks were identified as "pot boilers". They were heated up in an open fire and plunged into liquids in ceramic pots rather than put the pot directly on the fire. It would appear that over time the rocks cracked and were discarded, thrown into the pit that I was excavating along with the remains of animals and with broken pots. Some archaeologists say that they were used for roasting rather than for pot-boiling but the principle is the same.

On the archaeological programme 'Time Team" I've seen them drool over one or two potboilers and here I've found a stack!

Good eh?!