Date/Time
Date(s) - 18/11/2026
7:30pm
The Wreake and, to a lesser extent, the Eye, valley has seen considerable amount of archaeological work – fieldwalking, metal detecting, excavation and earthwork surveys – over the last few years.
Key discoveries include:
An Andesite ovate handaxe dating to roughly 500,000 BP was found near Rearsby, linked to the ancient course of the Bytham River. Flint scatters and Iron Age farmsteads, pits, and pottery have been identified across river terraces. Roman coin hoards and activity tied to proximity to the Fosse Way have been recorded. Excavations revealed a major early Anglo-Saxon rural settlement active from the 5th to 7th centuries AD. The Soar/Wreake confluence features large Anglo-Saxon burial sites. Village names ending in -by along the river Wreake reflect significant Scandinavian settlement and late Saxon integration.
The talk attempts to pull this together to try to understand what we now know from Prehistory to the medieval period.
Peter has worked in Leicestershire Archaeology for over 40 years as an excavator, survey officer, museum curator, community archaeologist and Head of the County’s archaeological team. He was awarded an MBE for services to community archaeology and is an Honorary Visiting Fellow at the School of Archaeology and Ancient History, University of Leicester.
All are welcome; the price for non members is £3.00 (pay on door). For further information contact: Diane 07529 220111 secretary@hobyanddistricthistory.co.uk