ALTHOUGH the dust settled long ago on the row about the age of the ancient cobbled track which dissects the Forest of Dean, it may be a year or more before archaeologists can prove conclusively if its roots are medieval or Roman.

This Friday (September 18) Phil Riches, of The Pludds, Ruardean, will update members of the Forest of Dean Local History Society on the results of a recent dig on a section of the road which is known to half the Forest’s population as the Dean Road and to the other half as the Roman Road.

A short length of the road – which runs from Lydney to Mitcheldean – is exposed for public viewing at Blackpool Bridge, near Blakeney Straits and each year it is visited by hundreds of people.

Always known locally as the Roman Road, there was a verbal punch up among academics when it was announced that the “cobbled pavement” was, in fact, medieval. It resulted in signage at Blackpool Bridge being changed from ‘Roman’ to ‘Dean’ and kept the letters pages in the local press alive for weeks.

Mr Riches, a leading member of the Dean Archaeological Group, says a limited excavation has taken place but believes a conclusive result to be at least a year away.

It is quite possible, he says, that a more ancient road exists beneath the cobbled road while Roman coin hoards found nearby could be compelling evidence.

Mr Riches will also talk about a dig which has taken place at Welshbury, near Flaxley, a site believed to be an ancient British camp, but, like the Dean/Roman Road, shrouded in mystery.

He said: “Very little work has been done there and I believe there could be much more to discover.”

Friday evening’s meeting at the West Dean Centre begins at 7.30pm and is open to anyone interested.