Over 800 Whetstones Unearthed in England, Pointing to Ancient Roman Factory

River Wear between Durham and Chester-le-Street. Credit: Mark fletcher / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
A massive haul of more than 800 whetstones and 11 stone anchors has been unearthed during a six-month excavation in 2025, pointing to what archaeologists say may have been an ancient Roman factory site in northern England. The discovery offers new insight into the region’s role in manufacturing and trade during Roman Britain.

The excavation, led by the Vedra Hylton Community Association with support from the Department of Archaeology, took place along the River Wear in Offerton. Experts say the scale and condition of the whetstones suggest the site functioned as a major production hub, likely supplying tools for both civilian and military use.

Evidence of large-scale tool manufacturing in Roman Britain

Researchers noted the presence of a matching sandstone outcrop across the river, suggesting stone may have been deliberately quarried and processed on-site. If confirmed, this would mark the first known Roman location in Britain where whetstones were produced directly from local quarrying efforts.

Dr. Elaine Turner, a senior archaeologist on the project, said the range of artifacts points to a highly organized operation. She explained that whetstones in various stages of production were found, from roughly cut blocks to finely finished tools.

Many showed damage, indicating they were discarded during quality control, likely because they did not meet Roman military standards for uniformity.

To verify the age of the site, sediment samples from around the whetstones underwent Optically Stimulated Luminescence testing. This method measures how long minerals such as quartz have been buried by detecting the last time they were exposed to sunlight. Results dated the layers to between 104 and 238 AD, placing the site firmly within the Roman period in Britain.

In addition to the whetstones, the excavation team uncovered 65 conjoined whetstone pairs and a rare triplet that had not been split. Experts believe many more remain buried in the riverbank.

River transport and the ancient Roman factory in England

Stone anchors, possibly used by transport vessels carrying sandstone across the river, were also recovered. Five were found during the 2025 dig, adding to six found in 2022. The total of 11 makes it the largest concentration of stone anchors ever recorded at a river site in northern Europe.

Other finds included a Tudor-era leather shoe, stone and iron cannonballs, lead shot from the English Civil Wars, a post-medieval wooden jetty, an earlier stone-built jetty, and a variety of tools such as chisels and stone splitters.

Archaeologists say the full range of discoveries could extend evidence of human activity along this part of the River Wear by more than 1,800 years.