Archaeologists have discovered a well-preserved Roman well made of woven wicker that still contains what appears to be the remains of a rung ladder.
Oxford Archaeology has been excavating the site of a larger Roman agrarian settlement. This is one of several wells they’ve discovered so far, and it is remarkably intact, the organic materials preserved by the anaerobic waterlogged conditions.
The well was constructed by cutting a shaft down to the water line, then intricately weaving the wicker wall to create what is basically a large, bottomless basket with sails (uprights) woven into the horizontal weavers lining the shaft. The gap between the wicker and the cut shaft was filled with large timbers which the archaeologists believe was waste wood.
The probable ladder consists of only one rail, angled to the top of the wicker, and one rung at the top of the rail. It is missing the second rail and its other rungs, which is why archaeologists cannot decisively conclude that it was a ladder, but it seems the likeliest possibility.
The well is still being excavated, and archaeologists hope to find significant remains at the bottom of it. Valuable objects, deliberately deposited in the ritually significant depths or simply lost, organic remains, broken pottery, kitchen trash, murder victims — you never know what you might find at the bottom of a well-preserved ancient well.
Meanwhile, the top of the well that has been excavated thus far has already been 3D scanned and a model created to give people a close view of the intricate weaving of the wicker construction.
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