Post Track

The Post Track is an ancient causeway in the valley of the River Brue on the Somerset Levels, England. It dates from around 3838 BCE,[1][2] making it some 30 years older than the Sweet Track from the same area.[3] Various sections have been scheduled as ancient monuments.[4][5][6][7]

The timber trackway was constructed of long ash planks, with lime and hazel posts spaced along three-metre intervals.[8] The track follows closely in line with the Sweet Track, and before the planks were dated it was posited that it served as a construction platform for the Sweet Track.[9][10] It is speculated that it led to places of spiritual significance. It is likely that the route was intended to be a permanent fixture, with the track being updated, maintained, and eventually replaced as it succumbed to the elements.[11] Some of the wood planks were also reused in the Sweet Track when it was built making the specific dating more complex.[12]

References

  1. "Sweet Track". Severn Estuary Levers Research Committee. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  2. Joseph, Frank (2013). Before Atlantis: 20 Million Years of Human and Pre-Human Cultures. Inner Traditions / Bear & Co. p. 25. ISBN 9781591438267.
  3. Brunning, Richard (2006). "A window on the past - The prehistoric archaeology of the Somerset Moors". In Hill-Cottingham, Pat; Briggs, Derek; Brunning, Richard; King, Andy; Rix, Graham. The Somerset Wetlands: An ever changing environment. Wellington, Somerset: Somerset Books. pp. 40–41. ISBN 978 0 86183 432 7.
  4. "Sections of the Sweet Track, the Post Track and associated remains 500m north east of Moorgate Farm". National Heritage List for England. Historic England. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  5. "Sections of the Sweet Track and Post Track, 240m south west of Sunnyside Farm". National Heritage List for England. Historic England. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  6. "Sections of the Sweet Track and Post Track, 250m ESE of Station House". National Heritage List for England. Historic England. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  7. "Sections of the Sweet Track and Post Track, 650m east of Canada Farm". National Heritage List for England. Historic England. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  8. Novel Guide - Trackways and Boats
  9. Brunning, Richard - Neolithic and bronze-age Somerset: a wetland perspective
  10. "10740: Post Track, Shapwick Heath". South West Heritage Trust. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  11. A. W. R. Whittle Europe in the Neolithic: the creation of new worlds; pg. 236
  12. Coles, J.M.; Coles, B.J. (1990). "Dendrochronology of the English Neolithic : Part 11: the Sweet Track date" (PDF). Antiquity. 64 (243): 216–.
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