The archaeology of Worcestershire's Sandlands

Thursday 27 August 2026

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Photo by Andy Harris

Find out how archaeology is uncovering the history of Dropping Well Farm...

Frost-covered rural field with a curving strip of freshly ploughed dark soil in the foreground, a small tractor working near a lone tree in the midground, a large bare tree at left and a misty treeline beneath a pale blue sky.

Before restoring Worcestershire’s Sandlands, and as a condition of countryside stewardship funding, we were required to consult with the Historic Environment Record, which is maintained by Worcestershire County Council. The team came to site and noted several features on the ground, such as enclosure embankments, military tracks and The Devil’s Spittleful moat, mound and cave. Having managed the site for years, I was very aware that we were discovering new features as we cleared vegetation and that, if left unprotected, these features could be damaged by machinery. Historic features, surviving undisturbed for decades or centuries, are often located where rare species survive. Additionally, uneven features like earthworks and banks provide places of shelter for animals, such as reptiles and invertebrates. The heathland landscape, which is relatively undisturbed, preserves old features, whereas on farmed land or built land, evidence of past activity is scarce or more damaged.

Volunteers looking at soil in a freshly turned, muddy field - bending and digging in winter coats beneath bare trees under a grey overcast sky.

Once we acquired Dropping Well Farm, I wondered whether there was evidence of the past heath on site or, more likely, evidence of its conversion to farmland. With a plan to restore the site to heath, including cultivating ground on a regular basis, I saw an opportunity to look for such evidence. As part of our community engagement work, we funded some basic training in field walking, archaeology (and archaeological finds) identification and assessment. We commissioned Worcestershire County Council’s Historic Archive and Archaeology Service to run a series of training sessions for keen staff and volunteers to find out what this entailed. Nina O’Hare, Senior Community Project Officer, and Constance Mitchell, Community Project Officer, were instrumental in guiding us.

After carrying out conservation work during work parties we looked for human-made debris in cultivated plots. Additionally, David Brown, one of our conservation volunteers, has metal detected each plot under our guidance. This is important as metal detecting can and should only be done with permission of the landowner; in the case of Sites of Special Scientific Interest consent from Natural England is also needed. David’s meticulous surveys have shown the detail of land use over the past three centuries. Our collective efforts are unique and we have a wealth of evidence that reveals that the surviving heath landscape is very special, demonstrates the history of the farm as former heath and shows the huge efforts that were put in to convert it to farmland. Evidence also shows the areas of the farm that have been least impacted by modern farming, where conversion to heath will be easier.

Soil-covered, heavily corroded fragments arranged in shallow plastic trays being examined and sorted, a hand visible at the top edge.

The work has been complex and has involved looking at soil profiles, passing bones on to specialists and liaising with the county archaeology team. The wealth of finds is being documented for the Trust and a series of articles are being entered into the Worcestershire Record, the journal of the naturalists’ group Worcestershire Recorders. Much of this information will be weaved into a publication about the heaths of the area.

Here’s a taster of some of the findings:

A beautiful mesolithic knife dating from when the site was an open heathland
Older finds from fields closest to Bewdley indicating earlier enclosure of the land and farming, including personal items that suggest people working in the fields
A remarkable amount of pottery dating from after the establishment of Dropping Well Farm on the former heath
Many horseshoes from the days of machinery
Evidence of the application of bone fertiliser from the nineteenth century onwards and carpet shoddy in more recent decades
Kilogrammes of metal work from after the advent of the tractor
Personal items lost by workers including buttons, coins and clog clasps
More valuable items either imported in with manure waste or dropped by the landowner or people attending events like horse race meets or the army camps
Many indications of military activity via earthworks and shell casing.

Our research goes on and we look forward to finding more information about the history of this fascinating place.