Time Team Excavation Site Esher (Esher)

 interesting place, invisible, historical layer / disappeared object

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This residential estate is in the heart of the Surrey commuter belt. It’s typical of the success, wealth and show of the modern age. And in the middle of it is this tower, which is typical of the success, wealth and show of the Tudor period.

But it’s also the tip of an archaeological iceberg, because if you look at this really old drawing you can see that a tower is the gateway to a lavish palace which was once owned by some of the wealthiest men in the country, the Bishops of Winchester.

It’s a palace that was once so admired, that King Henry the eighth literally stole one of the buildings. So how much of it survives under these beautifully manicured lawns, and how many of these gardens would it have once covered? The palace has been lost for over 300 years. We’ve got just three days to find it.