Fin Cop Hillfort

The Peak District National Park is the second most visited national park in the world, and is home to some of the most imposing, and yet little-known prehistoric enclosures in Britain; Fin Cop hillfort overlooking Monsal Dale is one such monument. Longstone Local History Group (LLHG) made a successful bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund to record and excavate the hillfort, trained and assisted by Archaeological Research Services Ltd (ARS Ltd). Desk-based assessment, geophysical survey and an in-depth topographic survey were undertaken as the initial phases of the project, ensuring that a rounded understanding of the site could be arrived at.

Following this, in the summers of 2009 and 2010, LLHG along with staff members from ARS Ltd, children from six local schools and hundreds of other volunteers excavated this enigmatic site.

What was uncovered during the course of the Fin Cop project has undoubtedly enriched our understanding of not only this site, but also of the hillforts of the Peak District as a whole.

Click on the image below to go to the Fin Cop web pages and discover the full story

Click here to see a video podcast about the human remains from Fin Cop

Click here to see a video of the 2012 excavations

As part of the project, a schools lesson pack has been produced based on the excavations at the hillfort. This is free to use for teachers and can be downloaded by clicking on the link below.

Fin Cop Schools Pack [4.7Mb]

The reports detailing the various stages of the Fin Cop project can be downloaded by clicking on the links below:

Fin Cop Desk-Based Assessment
Fin Cop Earthwork Survey Report
Fin Cop Geophysical Survey Report
Fin Cop 2009 Excavation Archive Report
Fin Cop 2010 Excavation Archive Report

To download a copy of the Fin Cop Project Leaflet click on the image below:

For coverage of the 2009 discoveries in the wider media click on the following links:

BBC News Website
Derbyshire Times
Buxton Advertiser
Matlock Mercury
The Star

A video of the Fin Cop story by Great Longstone Youth Group can be seen here.

To see a map of the hillforts of the Peak District click here.