For the last few decades , Historic England and its affiliate have beenstudyingaerial pic — and , in recent years , imagery from lidar , Google Earth , and other digital sources , too — so as to catalog historical web site across England . Now , they ’ve compiled all that information into a single dazzling interactive map , detached for anyone to explore online .

AsSmithsonianreports , thisAerial Archaeological Mapping Explorercontains G of sites and covers an impressively panoptic swath of history , from about 6000 years ago right up through the Cold War . If little - known prehistoric mound forts are your affair , you ’re in luck . There are some of those , as well as Iron Age farm , Bronze Age burial hammock , Industrial Age ember - mining sites , and much more .

You ’ll also find a numeral of specially famous landmarks : Stonehenge , for exemplar , andHadrian ’s Wall , a 73 - mile Harlan Stone barrier that marked ( and protected ) the Roman Empire ’s northwestern border across northern England .

A small fort along Hadrian’s Wall in northern England.

you could zoom in and out and choose sites , draft in red , at random , or you could locate a specific place or address using the hunt bar . Once you ’ve clicked on one , a box will appear with a brief account and connect to more information about it .

“ This new ethereal archeology map dick lets multitude fly nearly over England and drink in its many stratum of chronicle . It will allow everyone to explore the hidden heritage of their local places and what makes them special , ” Historic England chief executive Duncan Wilsonsaidin a instruction . “ We go for it will give people a point of departure to further probe , whether for research purpose or simply to satisfy curiosity about what archeologic features they may have noticed around their local area . ”

you’re able to explore the map for yourselfhere .

[ h / tSmithsonian ]