The Lost Kingdoms of Central America concludes with the “Place Where Time Began.”  Dr. Jago Cooper explores the Teotihuacan civilization.  For hundreds of years, it was the biggest state in the world.  They built huge pyramids.  They were an empire in the fullest sense of the world.  They pre-dated the Aztec civilization.  However, nobody knows the identity of this civilization.  Archeologists are spending time trying to piece together this civilization.  Dr. Cooper tries to find out more about this final mysterious civilization.   

2,000 years ago Teotihuacan dominated the Ancient American world.  Teotihuacan’s influence would spread to other empires.  Teotihuacan’s rulers built grand monuments.  What drew people to Teotihuacan?  How did the Teotihuacan rulers consolidate their power?   What drove the Teotihuacan people to dominate the world?  Why did it grow so influential?  Dr. Cooper seeks to understand this civilization.  Teotihuacan was situated in the high plains of Mexico.  It grew into a large city-state.  Little is known about Teotihuacan.

Teotihuacan was one of the many settlements in the Mexico basin.  It grew rapidly.  The Teotihuacan civilization eventually smothered the several settlements around it.  Other settlements ended due to a volcanic eruption.  Cities around the volcano ended up being covered in 10 meters of lava.  The volcanic eruptions scared the people.  As a result, the people left their cities to look for safety.  Eventually Teotihuacan grew.  The Teotihuacan rulers could provide a measure of safety the other settlements could not.

How did this civilization survive in this environment?  They lived on several volcanos.  The rains and flooding were unpredictable.  The people looked to their rulers.  The rulers were in charge of the rain.  They kept the rain coming or not coming.  The religious system mattered to the people.  The community was above the individual.  If the people followed their leaders, then all would be well.  There was one ritual that kept the people going: human sacrifice.  Archeologists discovered remains in one of the temples.  The bones showed how they were sacrificed.  There was a blow to the head and then the heads were removed from the body.  Then the heads were placed in the pyramid of the Moon.  Teotihuacan was huge and control the population proved to be a challenge to the rulers.  So, human sacrifice was also used as a political tool to control the population. 

Additionally, the rulers controlled their empire through trade.  This brought in new ideas and materials into the empire.  The Teotihuacan people dealt in the obsidian trade.  It is a volcanic rock used to create tools for cutting.  Obsidian was a rare rock, and it was highly valued by the Teotihuacan people.  Dr. Cooper goes in search of the source for obsidian.  Obsidian was found in 50-ton blocks and they would be cut down into smaller sections to be carried out.   Then the people would make tools and weapons out of obsidian.  The spearheads that were created were incredibly sharp and deadly.  Teotihuacan also expanded their empire through battle.

  How did this civilization go up in flames?  Why did the Teotihuacan collapse?  What happened to its people?  Why is finding out about this civilization so hard?  Dr. Jago explores the reasons why Teotihuacan collapsed.  If you want to continue to learn more about Teotihuacan continue to watch the documentary.

Beware that there are sound and freezing issues with this video if you want to use this video in the classroom.  If this bothers the class, then just use this video for clips.  This documentary is highly recommended for a history classroom.  If you want to give your students a break from studying the Aztecs, then this is a good documentary to show in the classroom.

The Lost Kingdoms of Central America continues in Between Empires and Oceans.  Dr. Jago Cooper starts off his journey in Costa Rica.  Archeologists ignored the country for decades, unaware of a hidden civilization so close.  When Columbus found this civilization the people were covered head to toe in gold.  It was called “Costa Rica” because the area was so rich. 

It was a civilization that had built many cities.  They thrived among volcanoes.  They lived between two continents and two oceans.  Cooper explores the challenging landscape to discover this civilization.  During the 20th Century, this civilization was rediscovered.  This discovery helped archeologists locate settlements of this mysterious civilization.  They found similar settlements in southern Costa Rica and Northern Panama.

Dr. Cooper heads up in the air to understand the landscape.  He wants to know the environment to help determine how this civilization survived.  For decades, archeologists believed that no civilization could survive.  They focused their efforts on the Maya and the Andean civilizations.  They missed something special hidden in the Costa Rica jungle.  Dr. Cooper goes to a site where the Ancient Costa Rican people lived.

The settlement contains stone circles.  The stone circles were different sizes.  They worked with the landscape to build their settlement.  The settlement lasted for 700 years and they harvest maize and other crops.  This site was eventually rebuilt and it became a religious site.  It became the home of priests and other religious figures.  It was a place of pilgrimage.

Why did they rebuild the site?  Perhaps the answer lies in a cemetery found on the site.  It was one of the biggest cemeteries in the region.  The Ancient Costa Ricans treated their dead by marking their ancestors’ graves.  Their dead was buried and buried next to or nearby to family.  The Ancient Costa Ricas marked groups of graves.  The bodies are long gone and devoured by the soil.  The artifacts are gone.  They were looted long ago, they were looking for gold.  Pounds and pounds of gold came from that site.

Gold was a symbol of wealth and power.  Gold was an emblem of authority.  The ancient Costa Ricans buried gold with their dead.  There are still questions about the Ancient Costa Ricans.  Why did a settlement turn into a religious site?  What prompted the change?  Why was the site reconstructed? 

Cooper makes his way to a museum.  He discovers that jade was a valuable resource for the Ancient Costa Ricans.  Jade use flourished in the Mayans.  Perhaps before gold, Jade was used.  The ancient Costa Ricans carved items out of jade.  This also meant that jade traded to Costa Rica.  This is another piece in the Ancient Costa Rican puzzle.  Eventually, jade’s use went away and gold was used.  Perhaps the ancient Costa Rican’s religion started to change.  The small objects created with gold or jade were religious images.

Gold also had a political role.  Gold was controlled by the political elite.  Understanding why jade changed to gold is key to understanding the Ancient Costa Rican’s view of the world.  Jade demonstrated the influence of the north.  So perhaps gold demonstrated the influence of the south.  It also shows how connected the Ancient Costa Ricans were to the outside world.

To continue to learn more about the ancient people of Costa Rica, continue to watch the documentary. 

This is a fascinating documentary for a history class.  You can use this documentary for an anthropology class.  It is interesting to see an area that archeologists have not spent much time in.  This is another great episode to show to a class to give students a break from the Mayans, Aztecs, and Incans.

In Lost Kingdoms of Central America episode 2 “The People who Greeted Columbus,” Jago Cooper explores the Taino civilization.  This civilization was the one that greeted Columbus.  It was where primitive life met progress. This discovery had an impact on history.  New archeology has revealed the Taino people’s secrets.  Dr. Cooper has been working in the Dominican Republic for 15 years and is helping with those discoveries.

The first evidence emerges in the Dominican Republic.  Dr. Cooper, along with several guides and additional archeologists go deep into the jungle.  The jungle has hidden and protected the secrets of the Taino people.  The Taino believed they came from the heart of the Caribbean islands.  Dr. Cooper explores a cave at the heart of this story.  Here they discover pictographs left behind by the Taino people.  The pictographs tell Taino’s story in their own words.  

The first immigrants came from Central America and Florida.  When they settled in the Caribbean islands, they developed myths about their origins.  The Taino Myth asserts they originated there and they are rooted there.  These beliefs helped them create a sense of belonging.  Dr. Cooper then heads to a private museum to explore more about the Taino people.  What fascinates Dr. Cooper is how the Taino modified their skulls. 

The Taino were a highly sophisticated civilization.  They began as a fisherman.  Then the Taino built villages.  They shared values and ideas.  Around 900 AD, the Taino culture was forming.  Cooper goes into a village site of one of the largest Taino settlements.  This community thrived.  The artifacts show how sophisticated they were.  They decorated their house, they were very “house proud.”  The Taino made high-quality objects. 

Like most, civilizations there was a population that needed to be fed.  How did the Taino feed their people?  The Taino grew corn, cassava, and sweet potatoes.  Cassava was made into bread.  It could be left in the ground for three years without spoiling.  That was an interesting fact to find out about cassava.  Even today, the locals still make cassava bread.  They even make cassava pancakes.   Dr. Jago enjoys the delicacy.  The jungle was also a great source of food for the people.  They never forgot their fishing roots either and fished as well.  The Taino had one foot on land and one foot on the sea.

Cooper creates an idyllic picture of the Taino.  They were isolated people on their island paradise.  The Taino were well fed and they did not fight with each other.  Cooper immediately shatters this myth.  The Caribbean Sea was their highway.  The Taino were a water people after all.  The Taino culture spread from village to village as well as island to island.  Even though they were scattered through the islands of the Caribbean, they managed to stay united. 

The Taino villages were run by a cacique.  They were political, economic, religious leaders.  Even after the cacique died, their people still took care of their spirits.  Dr. Cooper heads to Puerto Rico to explore the religious life of the Taino.  He goes to one of the earliest religious sites in Puerto Rico.  The Taino created religious icons that could be carried with them or left at religious sites.

To continue to learn more about the Taino continue to watch the documentary “The Peoples who Greeted Columbus.”

There are sound issues with the documentary I found.  There may be a better quality one on YouTube and if you find it, use it in a classroom.  This is a fantastic documentary on people I have never learned about in school.  The first time I heard about the Taino was in the Royal Diaries’ Anacaona.  This would be a documentary I would share with a classroom.

Today, we will explore documentaries about another part of the world: Central America.  Dr. Jago Cooper explores the Lost Kingdoms of Central America.  He travels through the wetlands of Mexico and the jungles of Costa Rica. He dives into the Caribbean Sea.  He flies above the volcanoes and goes caving.  The first episode in this series is called Kingdom of the Jaguar.  Cooper starts off his journey exploring a cave that the people believed was a tunnel to the underworld.  This civilization rose out of the marshes of Southern Mexico.  They built the first pyramids.  They are known as the Olmec.  They came before the Mayan People.  

The Olmecs were the first civilizations of Central America.  They believed their rulers had supernatural powers.  The Olmecs ruled in Central America 3,000 years ago and collapsed 1,000 years before the Maya.  Archeologists heard rumors of a giant eye and went to investigate.  What they found astonished them.  This was a civilization more advanced than what was previously discovered.  The Archeologists found an earlier civilization.  This cultivation thrived in the harsh climate of southern Mexico. 

Legends of a lost people are part of the local story.  However, the jungle hid the real civilization behind this story.  The climate is harsh with hurricanes, torrential downpours, and heat made building a civilization challenging.  However, the Olmecs seemed to make it work.  The environment changed the way the Olmecs existed.  They used their environment to their advantage.  The Olmecs stopped being nomads.  It was the first time maize was farmed.  Maize fed the people and it could be harvested three times a year.  They also grew beans and squash together.  Maize, beans, and squash helped keep both the soil and the people healthy. 

These three foods allowed the civilization to grow.  This civilization grew into something never before seen in Central America before.  Dr. Cooper goes in search of the original Olmec villages.  He discusses the challenges archeologists have in exploring the Olmec people.  Dr. Cooper ends up at the top of a hill and looks at the landscape around him.  It was here where the Olmec people developed. 

It was here that archeologists discovered their first stone building.  It was a palace for Olmec rulers.  To protect it, the site was reburied.  However, Cooper demonstrates that this palace was a sign of centralized rule in Central America.  The elite showed their power by carving heads.  These heads led up to the palace.  What made these individuals so special?  How did the ordinary people feel about the elite?

Dr. Cooper makes his way deeper into the Olmec territory and talks about the connection the Olmec had to their ancestors.  The Olmec carved objects and they would toss them into bogs.  The lakes and bogs were places that the Olmec believed to lead to the underworld.  Their connection to the underworld gave the Olmec legitimacy to their civilization.  A rubber ball was discovered among the offerings.  Cooper holds the ball and tells the cameraman that this was the first time that this object was filmed.  The Olmecs used rubber to make balls for their games.  The object of the game was to keep the ball moving.  It could perhaps be the forerunner of soccer.  Sports were an important part of society.

To continue to learn more about the Olmec watch this documentary.  Dr. Cooper is an excellent narrator who enjoys sharing the available information.  This documentary is highly recommended for a history classroom.  It is a fascinating look at a civilization other than the Maya.  So if you need to give your students a break from studying the Maya, then show an episode from The Lost Kingdoms of Central America.

Good morning, we will conclude our Lost Kingdoms of South America series with Kingdom of the Desert.  Dr. Jago Cooper explores the deserts of Peru and discovers the Chimor people.  The Chimor faced extremes in their climate but they made it work.  They created a desert oasis.  How did they build the great cities?  What motivated them to invade other lands?  Why did they disappear?  Dr. Cooper explores that and more in the Kingdom of the Desert.

In the 15th Century, the Chimor was at the height of their empire.  They settled between the coast of modern-day Peru and the Andes Mountains.  The Chimor Kingdom lasted for 450 years before vanishing into the desert.  Which empire came first the Inca or the Chimor; Dr. Cooper makes the case that it was the Chimor. 

When the Europeans arrived, they did not know what they were in for when they approached the Chimor capital city: Chan Chan.  It was the largest adobe complex in the world.  Chan Chan was established in the 10th Century and the Chimor people continued to expand the city for 500 years.  It housed 10 palaces within its high walls.  However, it was not the culture that interested the Spanish explorers, it was gold.

A hierarchy was ingrained in the people.  In their creation story, Royal men came from a gold egg, royal women came from a silver egg, and the common people came from a bronze egg.  The Chimor people shared the story that their ancestors came down from the coast and settled around Chan Chan.  The sea provided food for the people.  They would sacrifice to the sea gods to help with the harvest.  However, the early Chimor people could not just rely on the sea for their food.  They also looked to the land to survive.

So how does a civilization make a desert bloom?  The desert is known for being harsh and unforgiving.  However, the Chimor had an advantage: the melt from the Andes in the river valleys.  Dr. Cooper explores this theory.  He discovers and earlier people who lived in the same area as the Chimor.  These people used their location to their advantage too.  However, a catastrophic event led to their collapse.  It was two centuries before another civilization could survive in the deserts of Peru.

Archeologists discover that the Chimor used many of the same ideas this previous civilization had.  The Chimor cleaned out and took over the canals from the previous civilization.  They just made things bigger and better.  Cooper is surprised at how irrigation can change a desert into a green, vibrant, and fertile area.  Over many centuries, men and women dug canals and imported soil to make a desert bloom.  To continue to learn more about the Chimor people, continue to watch this documentary on YouTube.

The People of the Desert would be a good episode to show in geography, clips for a STEM class, and earth science class too.  Cooper goes fishing with the local fishermen and talks about how the currents impacted the fishing.  He also talks about the geography of Peru and how people adapted to it to build a civilization.  Teachers, you are limited by your imagination in determining how to use these documentaries in your class.

In the end, Lost Kingdoms of South America is an excellent series to show in a classroom for teachers who want to go beyond talking about the Inca people and the Spanish.  Dr. Cooper helps these lost kingdoms take their place in South American history.  The deserts and rainforests hide fascinating stories.  Teachers, take a look at these documentaries and share them with your history, geography, or earth science classes.

South America is the perfect place to hide secrets.  In the Land of Gold, Jago Cooper explores another lost kingdom of South America.  Cooper explores both the Muisca and Tairona.  Their gold carvings drew the Spanish conquistadors into their lands.  Was the land of El Dorado hidden in Columbia?  Both cultures were skilled in gold making.  Cooper explores this myth and teaches about the Muisca and Tairona cultures. 

1492 changed the world of the Muisca and Tairona people.  There were rumors of the Inca Empire.  The conquistadors made their way to the Andes.  Columbia was on the way to the Inca Homeland.  The Conquistadors were surprised as they made their way through the Columbian jungle.  An army of 800 conquistadors went through the Columbia jungle.  It was difficult and tough, sickness went through the army.  The journey was a nightmare. 

The Muisca was the largest culture in South America.  They occupied an area larger than Switzerland.  They were not ruled by a single person.  The Muisca was organized into two federations and these federations were made up of small towns.  When the Conquistadors came through, they occupied a small town.  Few original Muisca towns remain.  The Musica people built with wood, so little was left behind.  The land was held communally.  Some research hints that they were a democracy.

The Muisca also negotiated with the gods.  The gods took care of the weather.  However, the gods could not take care of the Spanish.  There were rumors of gold and cities of gold.  The Spanish searched for this city gold.  However, the story of El Dorado was inspired by a person, and he was a person who wore a lot of gold.  The Gold Museum shows off how the Muisca crafted gold.  There were many precious objects created with gold.

The second part of the episode discusses the Tairona people.  They rose about the same time as the Muisca people.  They lived upriver from the Muisca people.  They shared a language with the Muisca.  In fact, they traded gold, cotton, and salt with each other.  Discovering more about the Tairona people is a challenge.  Their mountainous location proves to be a challenge to archaeologists.  There was a horde of gold discovered in the mountains and Cooper takes a three-day hike to the place where the gold was discovered.  The site was big.  It was 10 times bigger than Manchu Pichu. 

The Tairona people took a lot of effort to build the city.  It was a tough terrarium where they were building.  When the civilization declined, the jungle took over and hid the city.  The Tairona people built with stone.  Stone preserved the Tairona structures for all time.  Archeologists discovered that the Tairona did not use mortar when they built.  They worked with their environment to survive.  The Tairona valued things that reflected light.  Gold not only reflected light but was the color of light.  They worked carefully with gold.  They polished and finished their pieces.  Tairona gold had spiritual values.  Instead of individual pieces, goldsmiths crafted objects that could be replicated over and over.

To continue to learn more about Muisca and Tairona watch the documentary.  This is another good episode to share with a history class.  The downside of the episode is that the Muisca and Tairona could have been easily covered over two episodes instead of one.  I felt like Cooper shared too little information about both cultures.  That said, if I was a teacher, I would share an episode or two of this series with a history class.  It is also an excellent research source for a class too. 

Dr. Jago Cooper is exploring a second lost civilization of South America in the Stone at the Center.  They are from Bolivia and live in the Andes.  They left behind a spectacular temple.  This temple was the heart of this civilization.  The temple stands at the height of 13,000 feet.  This civilization lasted over 500 years even though the Andes provided a challenging environment.  They should not have thrived, but they did.  They are the Tiwanaku people.

The Tiwanaku used Llamas to help build their civilization in the mountains.  They also took coca to help survive the thin air.  Coca gave them the stamina to work at the height.  Llama wool also gave them the clothing they needed to survive the cold air.  The llama also provided transportation for the Tiwanaku.  Llamas are uniquely built to survive the terrain.  It was still a precarious existence for the people  One frost could kill a crop. 

The Tiwanaku culture grew up around Lake Titicaca.  It is the highest navigable lake in the world.  The lake provided a microclimate for a civilization to grow.  The soil surrounding the lake was rich and farmers could grow their crops.  They were groups of subsistence farmers that came together.  These farmers discovered ways to farm outside of the Lake Titicaca basin.  They raised their farm beds and used irrigation to protect their crops.  They also performed careful maintenance on these beds.  The Tiwanaku extended their growing seasons and increased crop production.

Rituals also drew the Tiwanaku together.  It helped centralized civilization.  They would come together to sacrifice llamas, drink, and dance.  These celebrations help bring people together and they decided to build a temple, where they could meet for their celebrations.  The temple provided a grand stage for the ritual and celebrations.  The Tiwanaku moved the tones to the temple site and built a temple.  Abandoned stones along the trails show what the Tiwanaku use the stones for.

How did the Tiwanaku move these stones?  They used reed boats to move the stones.  Archeologists believed that Tiwanaku was a practical people.  They used their environment to their advantage.  Villages could be persuaded to make large reed boats.  In 2002, archaeologists put this theory into practice.  They had a village build a large boat, loaded it up with a large stone, and sailed it to the Tiwanaku site.  Villagers greeted them and took the rock off the boat.  Cooper was surprised to see this result.

Cooper then explores how they moved 9-ton stones across the land.  The archeologists believed that competition helped drive the temple building.  They could not pay the villagers to move the stone, but when villages found out that one village was helping, they volunteered their services.  This theory could be the explanation behind the temple building.  One village would contribute one thing, another village would contribute another thing.  They came together to build the temple.  It is an interesting theory and perhaps it is a logical theory to how the temple was built.

After the temple was built, the Tiwanaku people then turned their attention to building a pyramid.  It was the largest man-made object built in the Andes.  It provided an excellent view of the temple site.  So perhaps it was for the elite to view the temple site.  Or it was a dedication to the mountains.

This is another excellent documentary in the Lost Civilizations series.  If you were teaching an ancient history class, then I would show this series to the students.  If you wanted filler for a substitute teacher, then you can have the sub show it.  You are only limited by your imagination when it comes to using YouTube.  If you want to continue to learn more about the Tiwanaku people, continue to watch the documentary. 

Now let’s switch gears and explore the Ancient Americas.  We will kick off this series with Lost Kingdoms of South America.  South American history has been dominated by the Incas and the Spanish, so this series explores lesser-known civilizations.  Dr. Jago Cooper explores the ancient civilizations of South America.  This series is called Lost Kingdoms of South America.  This first episode explores the “People of the Clouds.”  They lived in Northern Peru in the Andes Mountains.  This isolation has hidden their history from the world.  Their artifacts are the most stunning and least understood in the world.

Cooper begins in Lima to see what the Spanish wrote about People of the Clouds.  They were people who only appointed chiefs during wartime.  This is not enough for Cooper and he talks to an expert.  She discusses how isolated the people were.  They buried their dead up high.  Only five percent of the People of the Clouds sites have been excavated.  This seems to keep the People of the Clouds a mystery.

Cooper heads into the mountains and starts exploring the People of the Clouds.  The People of the Clouds used the river as their highways.  The rivers flowed into the Amazonian Basin.  Rather than take days on foot, they would use the river and travel only a few hours.  Their high communities were connected with the outside world.  The Amazonian Peoples traded with the People of the Clouds.  The People of the Clouds thrived.  This seems to shoot down the myth that they were isolated people.  The People of the Clouds were a group that used their resources to their advantage.

He then looks at artifacts left behind by the People of the Clouds.  Cooper then talks about the llama’s importance.  They were used for travel and meat.  He talks about the other artifacts that were found.  There were also shells found and they were used for musical instruments.  Ideas were also traded along the routes.  The People of the Clouds controlled the trade routes through the mountains and over the rivers.  They controlled the flow of goods and ideas.  They incorporated those ideas into their culture.  They were also skilled weavers. 

Cooper then explores why the People of the Clouds settled in the mountains.  The People of the Clouds were highly connected to the outside world and living in the mountains would contradict that.  German archeologists believe that they settled in the mountains because they wanted to farm too.  The Andes Mountains provide different microclimates at different elevations.  The People of the Clouds could farm a variety of food.

Some of the people lived in a two-story building.  This surprises Cooper to see.  He never would have thought that people built two-story buildings in the past.  Cooper then goes father up the mountain to explore the People of the Clouds burials.  He rides into the mountains on a horse called El Loco.  It is tough terrain.  The terrain has protected these sites for years from looters.  Cooper then climbs up to see a cliff tomb.  It is a city of the dead.  Even with modern climbing equipment, the climb is a challenge for Cooper.  The People of the Clouds buried their dead without modern equipment.  How they got up the mountain with their dead is a mystery.

The bones of the people poking out of the landscape.  Cooper goes into a cave to see an intact tomb.  To find out more about the People of the Clouds continue to watch the episode.

It is a fascinating look at a different South American culture.  I know in history classes students learn primarily about the Incas and the Spanish conquest.  However, if you wanted to present another South American tribe to your class then you can present an episode of Lost Kingdoms of South America.   Highly recommended for a high school classroom.

In this Time Team special the team tries to find the 1066 battlefield.  Willam the Conqueror invaded England in 1066 changing the course of English history.  Where this history took place is a mystery.  No archeological evidence of the 1066 battlefield has been found.  The Battle of Hastings at 1066 was one of the most ferocious battles in English history.  It was brutal and bloody.  So where is the battlefield?  Time Team has been given unprecedented access to the official 1066 battlefield.   

Tony Robinson starts by discussing the history of 1066.  1066 had a seismic impact on English history.  The aristocracy was removed and replaced with foreigners.  Castles appeared in the English landscape for the first time.  The battle was the thought of William, Duke of Normandy.  He was the cousin of the English king.  When the English King died, another man seized the throne.  William then made his way over to England and won the English throne.

Later in English history, an abbey was built on the site of the battlefield.  The Normans built an altar where Harold, the noble who attempted to take the throne, died.  Unfortunately, there was no evidence of a battle that took place at the site.  No bones, no weapons were found.  Both sides had about 7,000 men each.  Harold had lost a lot of men defeating a Viking army.  It was a challenge to cobble together an army.  William had taken Hastings and was ready to fast Harold.

Several English historians finally started to challenge the real story about the location of the battle.  They looked to the chronicles.  The chronicles said that the battle was fought on the high ground and not on level ground.  The monks built the abbey four years after the battle and built it on a flat piece of the ground after getting advice from the locals. 

Time Team starts investigating the official battlefield and then the Hill where the historians believe that the 1066 battle took place.  Immediately, they run into problems because there are historical reenactments that take place on the official battlefield.  They will have to strip a layer of ground off the site because of the modern debris in the soil.  They will have to be careful when they remove the top layer.  900-year-old remains will be fragile, so they take care in removing the top ground layer.

Phil talks with one of the reenactors about what items would be dropped.  The reenactors talk about dropping teeth and bits and pieces off his uniform.  Weapons, even broken weapons, would be taken off the battlefield.  Anything that could be repaired was taken.  Scavengers would take care of the rest.  Tony looks at the Bayeux Tapestry.  It was a record of the Battle of Hastings.  It was created in Canterbury.  William the Conqueror’s half brother commissioned the tapestry.  Although it is an excellent piece of work, it demonstrates how little is known about the Battle of Hastings
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The Time Team goes over the plowed area with metal detectors.  They find metal nails and some archeology.  The dig continues.  It is a risk for English Heritage because the dig could find evidence that the battle did not take place where legend says it did.

This is an excellent Time Team episode.  It is so intriguing with its different angles as to the true location of the Battle of Hastings.  Tony Robinson narrates this episode very well and with a great deal of humor.  This would be one episode I would show to a history classroom or a science classroom because of all the theories and tests that are shown in this episode.  So does Time Team find the actual location of the Battle of Hastings, continue to watch to find out!