Excavations at the Lower Palaeolithic site of Whipsnade, Bedfordshire 1992–4

Abstract

The Lower Palaeolithic site of Whipsnade is located in a disused brick-field immediately south of Blake (previously Bleak) Hall [TL 0335 1763], in the village of Kensworth, Bedfordshire. It is one of about 14 Lower Palaeolithic sites discovered in the northeast Chilterns by the celebrated local antiquarian Worthington G. Smith, during the period 1886–1917. The site remains relatively unknown, and is by far the least famous of Smith's major research locations, being overshadowed by his flagship sites at Caddington, Gaddesden Row and Round Green. Yet during the period 1913–1915, the Whipsnade site produced a significant Acheulean assemblage, apparently from several separate cultural horizons. The obvious latent potential of the site, combined with its relative anonymity, encouraged one of the authors (JM) to initiate new excavations during the spring of 1992. These were undertaken with the aims of re-locating Smith's original site in order to document the geology, collect samples suitable for biological and sedimentological analyses and, it was hoped, to identify areas with suitable potential for large-scale excavation. This report presents the results of three seasons of excavation at the site.