Introduction to 'The Archaeology of Rutland Water: Excavations at Empingham in the Gwash Valley, Rutland, 1967-73 and 1990 '

With the exception of Site 7, excavated in 1990, the excavations published in this report were undertaken between 1967 and 1973, in advance of and during, the construction of Rutland Water reservoir. The reservoir, which lies 20 miles east of Leicester, was created by damming the River Gwash immediately south-west of Empingham village and flooding the twin valleys formed by its upper reaches to the west. The lower reaches of the river continue to flow eastwards to join the Welland, just beyond Stamford, lincs., which ultimately flows into the Wash. The flooding of the reservoir covered an area of 3,100 acres of farmland in a rural part of the County of Rutland, submerging in perpetuity a sizeable portion of the archaeological heritage of the East Midlands.[Taken from introduction]