SILLOTH, ENGLAND––According to a statement released by Grampus Heritage & Training, archaeologists working at a site called High Tarns Farm in Cumbria unearthed the largest Viking Age building ever found in Britain. The team was originally drawn to the location by the appearance of crop marks in satellite images, which suggested that a large ancient building, measuring 165 feet long and 50 feet wide, may be buried beneath the surface. They speculated that it might be associated with a nearby twelfth-century Cistercian monastery. However, carbon dating of timbers exposed during excavations indicated that the building dated to between A.D. 990 and 1040 and was unrelated to the later religious complex. The researchers instead believe that structure was the focus of a high-status Viking-era manor farm. Although Viking culture is well-documented in Cumbria through place names, language dialect, and burials, there is very little surviving evidence of buildings from this period. To read more about Vikings in England, go to "The Viking Great Army."
