Work begins to restore and protect the rare landscape of Greenwich Park’s ancient Saxon burial ground

The Royal Parks charity is leading a unique restoration project at Greenwich Park’s Saxon Barrow Cemetery to re-establish the ancient site’s rare acid grassland landscape.

The project will remove the tarmacked footpath introduced by the Victorians, which currently bisects the monument in two, and return the landscape to that of centuries gone by – recreating crucial habitats for pollinators such as butterflies and mining bees.

The burial ground which dates back to the 6-8th century, is located at Croom's Hill, south of The Avenue and west of the Meridian Line. There are approximately 1000 recorded sites of Saxon burials in England. The survival of over 30 upstanding burial mounds however, makes this a site of national significance.

The path currently runs from Croom’s Hill Gate across towards to the Royal Observatory and the works to peel back and remove the tarmac will provide a once-in-a-generation chance to learn more about the site’s history.