Eye in the sky to throw light on history of Viking mound

The Friends of Thynghowe group, working with the Forestry Commission, have organised an aerial survey of a Viking site called Thynghowe in the historic Birklands area of the woodland.

It is thought that the mound, which came to light five years ago through the work of local historians, was used as a meeting spot where Viking warrior farmers gathered to discuss “things” – hence the name.

The site is one of only a handful of such sites to survive in Britain.

Lynda Mallet, from the Friends of Thynghowe, made the discovery with husband Stuart Reddish and friend John Wood.

She said: “The aircraft used Lidar – a kind of laser radar – to look below the trees and record features on the ground.

“We hope this will tell us a lot more about the site’s enigmatic past.

“This is history in the making.”

The survey was made possible after the Heritage Lottery Fund awarded a £50,000 grant to support research on Thynghowe.

Andrew Norman, from the Forestry Commission, added: “Thynghowe has lots more secrets to yield and could emerge as an even more important discovery.”

Displays on the mound will run at Mansfield Museum in March.