Nine households volunteer to have their gardens dug up in the name of archaeology

Nine households have volunteered to have their gardens dug up as part of a community archaeology project.

Locals in the village of Nenthead are finding memories of a past lying just beneath its surface.

Archaeologist Colin Elder is looking to explore the history of the local area and the lead mining past connections with the village.

He said: "We are hoping to find anything that tells us a bit more about miners lives and miners families lives.

"The North Pennines area is associated with led mining and in Nenthead where we are. What we are trying to ascertain now is the stories behind the mines, the people and the lived experiences."

For landowner Cath Blackfeather it is an opportunity to find out more about the land she owns.

She said: "I live here and it is obviously an old place and I am interested in history and archaeology. I think when you live in a place you want to know more about it."

Rebecca Cadbury-Simmons from North Pennines National Landscape said: “It is a really tangible way to interact with the past, particularly with an archaeology dig like this.

"It helps place what they see around them in the landscape in the context of these were real lives and real people who lived here before us."

Archaeologist Colin Elder added: "A few of the finds will be going upon display publicly. We have also offered the land owners some finds if they want to keep it for themselves.

"There may be people with stuff in their back gardens that they weren’t even aware of."

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