Nenthead village test pitting project

22 June 2026

An archaeological dig will take place in Nenthead this summer to investigate the domestic lives of the lead miners who lived and worked there in the past. The project will involve digging one metre square test pits (small excavations) in gardens and fields around the village.

The North Pennines National Landscape team are looking for people who would like to offer their garden/land for a pit. Each test pit will be dug by hand by a team of volunteers and local community members, overseen by a professional archaeologist. We are likely to find things like broken pottery, bits of clay pipes, and maybe some broken personal items, such as toys and buttons.

We are collecting expressions of interest from people in and around the periphery of Nenthead who like to have a test pit on their land. If you would like to be involved, please complete the expression of interest form online and we will be in touch soon.

Frequently asked questions

1. Can I choose where the test pit is placed on my land?
Absolutely. The National Landscape team will work with you to find a suitable location that will not disturb any features or utilities.

2. What if the only place the test pit could go is on my lawn?
If the test pit is located on a lawn, the turf will be carefully removed and stored to one side so that they can be restored afterwards, allowing the lawn to recover easily.

3. How long would it take?
The excavation process will take no more than one day, including the back filling process.

4. Who will be doing the digging?
The digging will be done by volunteers, members of the local community, and the North Pennines Young Archaeologists Club. All digging will be overseen by professional archaeologists, and when the Young Archaeologists Club are digging, they will always be supervised by the club’s leaders.

5. Can I join in?
If you are interested in getting involved with the digging you are very welcome to join in, but this is not a requirement to volunteering your garden/land for a test pit.

6. If I sign up at this stage, can I change my mind?
Of course, you can change your mind at any stage of the process. You can do this by contacting the National Landscape team and asking them to remove your details.

7. I rent my house; can I still have a test pit in the garden?
Yes, but only if we receive written consent from the landowner. Please email us for more information about this.

8. When will you be wanting to dig?
The exact dates are still to be confirmed, but it will be summer 2026.

9. Do I need to be home when you do the test pit?
This is entirely up to you, and what you are comfortable with. If access to your garden/land depends on you being able to let us in however, then you will need to be there at least to let us in at the start of the day.

10. How many people will there be at the test pit?
Each test pit can comfortably hold about five people. If you have a field/larger piece of land that you would like the test pit on and we are able to do a couple of pits, then there could be up to 10 people at once.

11. How deep will you be digging?
The test pits will be excavated in 10cm layers, and each layer will be carefully recorded and photographed before we start to dig the next layer. The maximum depth will depend on when a ‘natural’ layer is found, this is a layer that has been undisturbed by human activity, often about 50-80cm deep. If we do not find a ‘natural’ layer by the end of the allocated digging time, this will be recorded, and the test pit backfilled as planned.

12. What are you hoping to find and what happens to the finds?
Most of what we will find will be discarded building materials, but we may also find things like sherds of pottery, animal bone or small personal items, such as buttons, shoe buckles or clay pipes. What happens to the finds will depend on what the item is. Finds that have little archaeological information to give will be recorded then buried again when they are backfilled. Finds that have some information to tell us will be retained to be examined by a specialist before being returned to the landowner (unless another agreement is in place). It is very unlikely that we will find any items that would be considered Treasure (items made of precious metals, prehistoric finds, coin hoards, etc.), but in the event that that does happen, the items will be reported to the appropriate authorities in line with the Treasure Act, 1996.

If you would like to be involved, please complete the expression of interest form online and we will be in touch soon.

The Land of Lead and Silver project is led by the North Pennines National Landscape team and funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, with thanks to National Lottery players, and Historic England.