A construction worker has discovered an 1,800-year-old Roman statue while he was digging up a parking lot.
The discovery was made while working on an overflow parking area at Burghley House, a historical Tudor-era manor dating back to the 16th century located 90 miles north of London. The artifact was uncovered by Greg Crawley who was driving a digger and saw a “pale object amongst the lifted earth” that he had been excavating.
“I had a real shock as the digger bucket rolled over what I thought was a big stone to reveal a face. When I picked it up, I realized it was the head of a statue,” Crawley said. “I couldn’t believe it when they told me it was a Roman marble statue. It was an amazing feeling to have found something so old and special – definitely my best-ever discovery.”
A few weeks later, as the parking lot was nearing completion, the bust of the same statue was also discovered. The items were then taken to Burghley’s curator before being sent to a professional conservator who could clean and consolidate the figure before reassembling both pieces.
“After being cleaned, experts dated the sculpture from the First or Second Century, with an iron dowel added later, allowing it to be attached to a bust or pedestal,” said Burghley House. “This type of adaptation was often carried out by Italian dealers in antiquities during the late 18th Century to make excavated ancient fragments more attractive to aristocrats traveling in Italy on what was known as the Grand Tour.”
Officials believe the statue may have come from one of the ninth Earl’s two tours to Italy in the 1760s when he purchased antiquities. It is still unclear how long the statue has remained hidden underground.
“But it remains a complete mystery how the head and bust ended up buried in the park, with explanations ranging from a bungled burglary to someone simply discarding the statue and it later being covered by soil,” said Burghley House.
The statue has a new home on display with the dramatic Hell Staircase at Burghley House and the findings were also reported to the British Museum, which maintains a database of historic discoveries.
“And when the House opens again for the 2024 season, on 16 March, the remarkable find will be on display, together with an explanation about its discovery, and alongside other sculptures that were purchased by the ninth Earl,” said Burghley House.
