The pits that held these posts were not the only discovery during the excavation, surrounding them were dozens of other holes containing artefacts belonging to the prehistoric people of Bulford village.
These objects have helped to establish the age of the site. The team used radiocarbon dating, which looks at how a special form of carbon changes over time, to work out that the structure was 5,000 years old.
The artefacts included an antler that would have been used for digging, and other carved animal bones, as well as finely decorated fragments of pottery.
Tools made of flint were also uncovered, including a rare Neolithic knife that has been rounded into a disc-shape (discoidal).
“It was, I think, our star find,” said Harding of Wessex Archaeology.
“What is so special about it is the workmanship that’s gone into it. That is the work of real craftsmanship.”
He said the knife was found in an upright position, like it had been carefully placed, and he wonders if it had a symbolic significance.
“Maybe that discoidal shape is some sort of reference to the Sun, who knows?,” he said.
