Archaeology
Ashdown Forest is rich in archaeology: there are more than 570 archaeological sites, including Bronze Age round barrows, Iron Age enclosures, prehistoric field systems, Roman iron workings, the medieval Pale, medieval and post-medieval pillow mounds for the rearing of rabbits, and remains of late 18th century military kitchen mounds that are among the only surviving ones in the United Kingdom.
The earliest known trace of human activity in Ashdown Forest is a stone hand axe found near Gills Lap, which is thought to be about 50,000 years old. The vast majority of finds date from the Mesolithic (10,000-4,000 BC) and onwards into the modern era.
The London to Lewes Way, one of three Roman roads that connected London with the important Wealden iron industry, crosses Ashdown Forest in a north-south direction, and would have been used to transport iron products from the Forest to London and the coast. The agger of the road, whose foundations include iron slag, can be seen at Roman Road car park.
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