ARCHAEOLOGISTS are to attempt to trace the extent of an ancient village and find long-lost features of a Roman fort.

Organisers are looking for volunteers to help map Longovicium, the Roman fort which stands on a hillside above the County Durham village of Lanchester.

The Friends of Longovicium has received Heritage Lottery Fund money to conduct geophysical work in fields surrounding the unexcavated fort, which is thought to date back to around 150AD.

A team will use hand-held magnetometers to detect and record anomalies in the Earth’s magnetic field in a two-hectare area to the south of the fort and one hectare to the north.

Volunteers will be searching for the limits of the vicus, or civilian settlement which surrounded the fort, and also hope to find the fort’s bath-house as well as confirming the alignment of Dere Street as it passes by.

Experts from Durham University’s Archaeological Services, will analyse the data and produce a report for the Friends.

Volunteers are needed for the physical work on the survey, which will take place over three days starting on Monday, October 26.

Anyone interested in taking part is advised that the site is very exposed with no facilities and that packed lunches will be required. Clothing should preferably contain no metal zips or studs, which can affect the magnetometers.

For further information, please contact Anne McKenzie on 01207 521427 or Rodney Hawkins on 0191 4103472.