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Ad Free | Stewart's Top 5 Discoveries that Transformed Archaeology (Patreon)

Published:
2026-06-12 15:00:14
Edited:
2026-06-16 15:52:18
Imported:
2026-06

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  • 679629362.mp4

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Content

Time Team's lead landscape archaeologist, Stewart Ainsworth, counts down the five discoveries he believes have transformed the world of archaeology. From sites on the other side of the world that you may never have heard of, to discoveries right here on our doorstep, Stewart explores the finds that changed our understanding of the past forever.

Do you agree with Stewart?

Let us know which are your favourite sites in the comments!

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Comments

Susan

We treasure Stewart!

CHCLA6779

Wonderful! Stewart is a treasure. So pleased that he is still a member of Time Team! Teaching. us to look at the entirety of our world.

Jack

Thank you Stewart. I agree with the number one choice as the way it sits in the landscape so clearly defines the whole area.

Helen

I agree with Stewart about Avebury being more impressive than Stonehenge. Back when Time Team started I was providing IT support to the Wiltshire County archaeologists, we got so fed up with the will they or won't they build a tunnel for the road, they jokingly suggested turning Stonehenge into a roundabout. That was back in the 90's and they still have not resolved the road issue. Stewart can only speak from his own experience, but I wonder if there are even more impressive sites in Asia or Africa, maybe an idea for a field trip?

Lord John

i thought Göbeklitepe might get a mention. Monezuma was a surprise.

Leanne

Having lived in Southwest US for a long time, and seeing many different monuments, and hearing the dates, which could be 700 to 1300 AD, I had never really considered it as 'Medieval' as such. Thank you for making that idea stand out!

Wessex-Wyvern

That is so interesting! I wonder if it was difficult to whittle down to those five? If I had to pick five I would find it incredibly difficult.

Robert Hunt

Please include closed captioning. I would have loved to have understood all of what Steweart

Janie Waters

thanks to Stewart for including the USA in this selection. Montezuma's Castle is a truly stunning location. Carved out of the red rock country, it is worthy of a trip to the back country of Arizona :)

Alan McMillan

Climate probably killed the civilization in the american cliff dwellings

Alan McMillan

Well said, thebpast is important

Robert Ernest Arthur Harvey

A fascinating list. I wonder what Mick's list would have been. We all know that Alice Roberts would have picked the Red Lady of Paviland

Emily Stonehouse

I was hoping to see Gobekli Tepe or Karahan Tepe mentioned.

Juliet B

Avebury is one of my favourite places

Peter Blay

For me also up there is Ness of Brodgar, stones of Stennes and Ring of Brodgar.

Peter Blay

I have been there last year along with Skara Brae

Christine Proud

On my phone I stop the video. Press the settings button on the video then closed captions, auto fill closed captions. Voila!

Robert Hunt

Unfortunately, none of that works. Thanks, though.

James Leighninger

Montezuma’s Castle may be impressive, but far more impressive and significant in Early Native American history is Cahokia Mounds, across the river from St Louis. A World Heritage site, it encompassed a population bigger than that of London in its heyday. I encourage you, Mr Ainsworth, to check it out. Might be a better addition to your list than Montezuma’s castle!

DIANA R NELSON

On my list. Last time we went that way the road in was flooded.

Mark Gaither

Sutton Hooves? Never heard of it 🙈

Mark Gaither

Averbury? Who is doing the closed captioning?

Andrew Lamb

From a fellow Yorkshire man… Stewart is the best! ⚔️⚔️👏

Kerry Hennigan

Thank you Stewart – and Time Team. This list has made me think about how I would rank the favourite archaeological sites I have visited on my travels. (Granted there are many I haven’t seen yet that would eclipse a lot of those I’m about to list.) But, as visited and observed, and the impact they made on me, are the following: 1. Petra, Jordan – from the famous rock cut tombs to Byzantine churches (and the remains of a Crusader castle), it all took my breath away (quite literally – due to the amount of walking/climbing required!) 2. Stonehenge (on my first ever visit to the UK – I’ve never forgotten that first sight of the world-famous and, (in my case) much read-about monument to human ingenuity. 3. Mesa Verde National Park – Anasazi cliff dwellings (and earlier pit houses) in southern Colorado. The whole of the southwest, with its Hohokam, Sinagua and Anasazi ruins is a wonder, in my opinion. Stewart’s choice of Montezuma’s Castle was the first example of these that I ever visited about three decades ago. 4. 4. City of Refuge – on the west coast of the big island of Hawaii. Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park. A relatively “recent” site in terms of archaeology timelines, but unique and culturally significant. https://www.nps.gov/puho/index.htm. North of Kona there are also a lot of platform mounds, settlement foundations and trails. As I recall, some of the foundations belonged to structures similar to Saxon SFBs. 5. Ancient Aboriginal rock art in Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory (the oldest up to 20,000 years old). The rock art 'gallery' of Ubirr is not to be missed - especially at sunset when, from the top of the lookout, you can view the sun setting beyond the flood plain (at the right time of year). it's the closest I've seen to what I imagine a prehistoric landscape minus human intervention to have looked like, at least in this part of the world. https://kakadu.gov.au/things-do/activities/rock-art/

Rebecca Clark

A fascinating list. I was really interested to see Avebury make number 1, having grown up in Wiltshire. I’ll have to go back for a trip next time I’m in the UK as clearly didn’t appreciate its importance during school trips years ago 😀

Gail

Thank you Stewart. You've taught me to look at the lumps and bumps right here at home.. Neptune, New Jersey, USA

Julie Turner

Thank you for a fascinating talk, Stewart. You are definitely a treasure! Like my fellow commenters here, I agree, we are so lucky that you are still a member of Time Team.

Nigel Sadler

Brilliant Stewart. I think I'd swap Knossos for Ancient Thera on Santorini. Also buried by an exploding volcano, but a town, not a palace complex as Knossos is.

Christopher Samuel

Thanks for sharing all those! Having lived in Australia I'd draw attention to Wurdi Youang in Victoria which is significant for having strong indications of astronomical and solar alignments, but could potentially be older than similar alignments in the northern hemisphere. https://researchers.westernsydney.edu.au/en/publications/wurdi-youang-an-australian-aboriginal-stone-arrangement-with-poss/ (PDF of the paper here: http://www.aboriginalastronomy.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Hamacher-2012-Wurdi-Youang.pdf). Also I'd say whilst Avebury and Stonehenge are wonderful, for significance I'd say Durrington Walls outranks them in significance because of it being where people lived and the evidence from isotope analysis of butchered animals for very long distance travel to it from across the UK for the construction of Stonehenge.

Pat Gentry

Great little talk to stimulate LOOKING as a skill to read the world. Always love seeing Stewart appear in the frame on Time Team. I will surely see more in front of me, and in the past, as well.

Susan Shepperd

I’m really surprised that the Ness of Brodgar wasn’t on the list!

Barbara Alam

Hi Robert, thanks for your request. In fact there are subtitles on the video - On a computer if you click Play on the video, then click on the square white button in the middle at the bottom of the video you can select to see the generated Closed Captions there. I hope that works for you?

Barbara Alam

Hi Mark - the closed captioning is automatic, but we are aiming to put on our own (corrected!) version as soon as we can, for all our videos ongoing. Thanks for your feedback.

Fred To

Thank you Stewart, you've always been able to grasp the wider picture of a site that's being investigated.

Julied123

Thanks Stewart, I totally agree wth you that Avebury should be number one.

Diana Smith

Always making us look again!

Chris Gardner

Ness of Brodgar? Skara brae orkney?