26 May 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Britain’s oldest decoratively piece of carved wood discovered in a layer of peat

A heavily notched oak timber found in a peat layer during construction work turned out to be the oldest piece of carved wood in Britain.

Radiocarbon dated to between 4640 and 4605 B.C., making it the oldest decoratively carved wood in Britain. It dated to more than 6,000 years ago, making it 2,000 years older than Stonehenge.

It is 400 years older than the previous record-holder, an oak post carved with wave and eye shapes discovered in Maerdy, Wales.

The meter-long (3.2ft) blackened piece of timber, with enigmatic carvings which have been compared to designs on ancient pottery, was found embedded in peat during the construction of an outbuilding at a property in the village of Boxford in Berkshire.

The markings also resemble those found on the oldest piece of carved wood – a figurine known as the Shigir Idol – a wooden sculpture found in the Ural mountains of Russia.

The Boxford Timber was discovered in Berkshire. At more than 6,000 years old, it is Britain's oldest carved wood. Photo: Derek Fawcett.
The Boxford Timber was discovered in Berkshire. At more than 6,000 years old, it is Britain’s oldest carved wood. Photo: Derek Fawcett.

At 12,500 years old, Shigir Idol is thought to be the oldest example of carved wood in the world.

It has been dated by experts from Historic England, with scientists from the Nottingham tree-ring dating laboratory, and the Centre for Isotope Research at the University of Groningen, to between 4,640 BC and 4,605 BC.

The scientists used a combination of radiocarbon dating, and tree ring dating of a slice of the wood, which together give a 95% probability of the date.

The timber was found in a waterlogged layer, 1.5 meters below the present ground level.  The site owner Derek Fawcettt, who immediately contacted the county archaeologist, Sarah Orr, said: “It was clearly very old and appeared well preserved in peat. After hosing it down we saw that it had markings that appeared unnatural and possibly man-made.”

Archaeological illustration showing intentional cut marks. Photo: Historic England / Judith Dobie.
Archaeological illustration showing intentional cut marks. Photo: Historic England / Judith Dobie.

The carved wood oak is one metre long, 0.42 metres wide and 0.2 metres thick (3.2ft by 1.3ft by 0.6ft).

Duncan Wilson, chief executive of Historic England said: ‘It’s remarkable that by doing routine building work a piece of modest-looking decorative wood turns out to be the oldest ever found in Britain.

‘This exciting find has helped to shine new light on our distant past and we’re grateful to the landowner for recognising its significance.

The donation is announced to mark Museums Week, from June 5-11. Janine Fox, the curator of the West Berkshire Museum, described it as “a brilliant find”, which they will be excited to display. “Further study may reveal more about the markings on the oak and its context, but its unearthing gives us perspective on the long rich heritage of West Berkshire and a tangible link to humans who lived in this area long before any towns and villages had been created.”

Historic England

Cover Photo: Derek Fawcett

Related Articles

New study investigates the development of the Scandinavian gene pool over the latest 2000 years

5 January 2023

5 January 2023

A new study resolves the complex relations between geography, ancestry, and gene flow in Scandinavia – encompassing the Roman Age,...

Researchers find evidence of the destruction of the Second Temple at the hands of Roman soldiers

29 July 2023

29 July 2023

Israeli researchers find evidence of the destruction of the Second Temple at the hands of Roman soldiers. The discovery of...

1,000-Year-Old Mass Grave in Peru Shows Victims Bludgeoned with Star-Headed Maces

26 May 2025

26 May 2025

Archaeologists from the University of Wrocław have uncovered a 1,000-year-old mass grave at the El Curaca site in southern Peru,...

3500-year-old grape seed remains found in western Anatolia

12 September 2023

12 September 2023

Archaeologists at the Aşağıseyit Höyük (Aşağıseyit Mound) site in western Anatolia’s Denizli have uncovered a 3,500-year-old grape seed. Aşağıseyi Höyük...

A Colonnaded Hall with Extraordinary Frescoes of Still Life Found in Pompeii

27 December 2024

27 December 2024

Archaeologists in the famous ancient Roman city of Pompeii, one of the world’s most iconic archaeological sites, have revealed extraordinary...

In Turkey’s western Uşak province, 2,000-year-old statues have been unearthed

19 December 2021

19 December 2021

During the excavations in the ancient city of Blaundos in the Ulubey district of Uşak, two statues of 2000 years...

Czech experimental archaeologists successfully completed their 1-month voyage in the Aegean Sea using a replica of a prehistoric vessel

17 July 2023

17 July 2023

Radomír Tichý, an archeology professor at the University of Hradec Králové who is also the director of the Všestary Archeopark,...

Researchers may have found 3,000-year-old evidence of Yue (Amputation), one of the five punishments practiced in ancient China

4 May 2022

4 May 2022

According to the South China Morning Post, researchers in China believe a skeleton discovered in a tomb in the country’s...

A Mysterious Deity’s Ancient Gold Gift was Discovered at Georgia’s Gonio-Apsaros Roman Fort

25 October 2024

25 October 2024

During excavations at the Roman fortress of Apsaros in Georgia, archaeologists discovered a unique gold votive plaque presented to Jupiter...

Tombs rich in artifacts discovered by Swedish archaeologists in Cyprus

7 July 2023

7 July 2023

A Swedish archaeological expedition made the extraordinary discovery of tombs outside the Bronze Age trading metropolis of Hala Sultan Tekke...

‘Proof of biblical kings’, Israel deciphers 8th century BC Hezekiah inscription after a decade of research

17 December 2022

17 December 2022

Israeli archeologists have deciphered an 8th-century BC inscription discovered on a palm-sized stone tablet after a decade of research.  The...

Circular-shaped Iron Age Gallic Village discovered in Côtes d’Armor, France

2 April 2024

2 April 2024

A major archaeological discovery has just been made at Cap d’Erquy, in the Côtes d’Armor region, France. The ruins of...

The Oldest Known Map of Europe, “Saint-Bélec Slab”

6 April 2021

6 April 2021

An ornate Bronze Age stone slab (Saint-Bélec slab) that was excavated in France in 1900 and forgotten about for over...

Ancient winery site uncovered in China’s Hebei

5 January 2022

5 January 2022

In northern China’s Hebei region, an ancient winery going back 400 years to the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties...

A new study reveals more than one person was buried in a tomb where the famous Nestor’s Cup was found

6 October 2021

6 October 2021

The Tomb of Nestor’s Cup, a burial that contained one of the oldest known Greek inscriptions, was more crowded than...