East Anglia Fens (02:07)

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Neil Oliver imagines how marshlands appeared to early Britons. In this program, he explores religion and spirituality in the Bronze and Iron Ages.

Flag Fen Causeway (04:56)

Bronze Age people viewed water as a portal between worlds. Archaeologists discovered an oak timber path serving religious purposes in a peat field near Peterborough.

Bronze Age Offerings (02:40)

Sacred objects were hidden in the Flag Fen Causeway; an expert believes they were used for small rituals. Locals continued to revere the site after it was submerged in 1000 BC.

Maiden Castle (03:39)

A Bronze Age hill fort in Dorset contains monumental boundaries indicating a fear based belief system.

Iron Age Religion (04:00)

1500 people once lived at Maiden Castle. A bronze burial mirror suggests a complex belief system; a priest class emerged and dictated spiritual practices.

Roman Invasion (02:22)

By 100 AD, Maiden Castle had fallen to the Roman Army. A burial suggests priests died defending the hill fort; the conquerors used the site for their own worship.

Anglesey Druids (03:54)

Romans encountered Celtic Iron Age priests ruling through intimidation. Propaganda may have maligned their reputation but the watery landscape was sacred.

Llyn Cerrig Bach Artifacts (03:50)

Iron Age weapons, jewelry, and slave chains were found in an Anglesey lake. They were likely submerged as an offering to the water; Romans saw Druids as religious extremists.

Bath in the Iron Age (02:54)

The Romans embraced Celtic holy sites; both were pagan and saw water as sacred. Learn why the Dobunni Tribe worshiped hot springs.

Iron Age Religious Survival (03:56)

Romans adopted Celtic deities; view sculptures combining the two belief systems. The Romans built a temple in Bath where they merged Minerva with the Celtic goddess Sulis.

Bath Roman Rituals (04:22)

An expert discusses how animal sacrifices were carried out. Romans came to the sacred spring to make requests to Sulis-Minerva—starting a tradition of tossing coins in water.

Lullingstone Villa (03:42)

A Kent archaeological site shows how Roman beliefs evolved over generations. Cellar paintings show that offerings were made to pagan water deities to keep the well clean.

Lullingstone Mosaics (02:49)

Messages hidden in artwork illustrate the villa's Roman owners were covert Christians.

Roman Religious Transition (02:02)

In 330 AD, Christianity was legalized and Lullingstone's owners could worship openly. They built a villa church; Neil analyzes holy wall paintings.

End of Paganism (01:30)

Lullingstone wall paintings are the earliest evidence of Christian worship in Britain. Believers replaced Roman and Celtic rituals but their sacred sites remain.

Credits: Sacred Wonders of Britain: Part 2 (00:46)

Credits: Sacred Wonders of Britain: Part 2