Long-Lost Dark Age Royal Kingdom Of Rheged Unearthed In Scotland

First Posted: Jan 30, 2017 02:51 AM EST

A long-lost medieval kingdom known as the Kingdom of Rheged was unearthed in the excavation in Dumfries and Galloway in southern Scotland. On the other hand, its actual location seems to be a mystery.

Ronan Toolis, who led the excavation for GUARD Archaeology, told Fox News that what they have found has all the hallmarks of an early medieval royal site. He further said that there are lots of evidence of wealth and power.

A Long-Lost Dark Age Kingdom has been FOUND in Scotland https://t.co/xAMtA6VdnA.. pic.twitter.com/NfsKGzUZkH

— Maestroviejo (@maestroviejoes) January 28, 2017

The excavation site is known as Trusty's Hill Fort, in which they excavated since 2012. The archaeologists uncovered a complex type of fort dated around A.D. 600. There was wooden and stone rampart that had been built around the summit of the hill to protect the site. This was referred to other high-status settlements of the early medieval period in Scotland, according to History.

They also found imported pottery from western France, crucibles and bowls with traces of gold, silver and bronzes and slingshots. Toolis said that the crucibles and bowls were for metalworking. They theorized that the entranceway, with the two Pictish symbols flanking it, was the location for royal inauguration ceremonies that took place at the fort complex.

The Kingdom of Rheged was one of the kingdoms of Hen Ogledd or known as "Old North," which is now the Brittonic-speaking region of northern England and southern Scotland. The kingdom is associated with King Urien Rheged and his family. The historians thought that the Kingdom of Rheged was situated in the modern city of Carlisle in northern England. On the other hand, the recent finds in Trusty's Hill Fort could have questioned that hypothesis.

Toolis said that the discovery that includes archaeological evidence indicates that Galloway may have been the heart of the lost Dark Age Kingdom of Rheged. He described it as a kingdom that was in the late sixth century pre-eminent amongst the kingdoms of the north.