Pippa Middleton’s ambitious plans to spruce up her Barton Court estate hit a literal stone wall, and by stone we mean thousands of years old.
Archaeologists have warned that proposed renovations could disturb prehistoric remains hidden beneath the grounds of the £15m country house.
The Middleton Matthews duo submitted planning applications to build a greenhouse, stables and a garden room, along with other extensions.
But experts brought in to assess the site have flagged the risk of uncovering relics from the Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Middle Ages and Post-Medieval periods.
Heritage Planning Services (HPS), the archaeological consultancy, told West Berkshire Council that the property is in an area rich in ancient human activity, with flint tools and evidence of early hunter-gatherer camps being discovered across the Kennet Valley.
“Mesolithic remains are known from flint scatters and semi-permanent sites in the area, and prehistoric flintworks have even been found directly on the estate,” the report states.
The Kennet Valley, which stretches 12 miles between Kintbury and Aldermaston, has long been famous for early human activity, with butchered animal bones and ancient campsites emerging along the river’s floodplain.
HPS warned that Pippa’s plan for a formal raised garden, demolishing some existing structures and building new ones, could potentially damage a non-designated heritage asset.
