Barkham Manor
The road to Barkham Manor
©The Natural History Museum
This picture shows the road to Barkham Manor. The Piltdown fossils were uncovered in a gravel pit alongside the road.
Piltdown man
This is the field in Sussex where Charles Dawson and Arthur Smith Woodward unearthed the Piltdown bones. Click on the screen to find out how they carried out their field work. Then compare it with an excavation today by clicking 'Now'.
In the field
Charles Dawson (left) and Arthur Woodward
©The Natural History Museum
Charles Dawson regularly visited Barkham Manor on Piltdown Common. While visiting, a labourer handed him an object he had uncovered while digging. It was a thick piece of human skull. Excited by the potential of what else might be found there, Dawson began digging at the site.
References
- Discovering fossils:
general information about fossil collecting in the UK - The scientific method:
explored as part of the Museum's Darwin Centre experience
