But much to her dismay, Margaret shook her head again. ‘Not a shrine site. Or at least these finds don’t help us in establishing whether it is or isn’t.’

The exasperation in Clare’s voice was plain to hear. ‘But I don’t understand, Margaret. What other sort of site could possibly produce finds like these?’

Margaret sighed. ‘That’s just the problem. I really have never seen an assemblage of artefacts like this one. And most definitely not from a site in Britain. All of these finds, without exception, have been made in continental Europe.’

‘In Europe! So, what are you saying? We have some kind of trading post? Like the one at Hengistbury Head, but higher status?’

‘No, though it would be rather wonderful to find another site like Barry’s. I’m afraid our problem is considerably bigger than that. The truth is that, much as I’d like to say otherwise, there is no way that those objects originated on our site.’

‘But how can you be so sure? Maybe Bailsgrove is truly exceptional.’

‘It may very well be, my dear, but those artefacts were created across the length and breadth of Europe. The closest things I’ve seen to that beautiful dagger and the little figure come from a chieftain’s burial in Hochdorf in Germany. The geometric decoration is unmistakably Hallstatt, I’d say from around the sixth century BC. But both of the swords are La Tène. They date to the very end of the Iron Age, three or four hundred years later. And the little figure has obviously been broken off from a krater.’

Clare asked, ‘A what?’

‘A sort of giant punch bowl, used for mixing wine and water. It’s clearly continental. Admittedly it’s just conceivable that some of the brooches could have come from Britain, but I think it’s highly unlikely.’ She paused to take a slug of her whiskey. ‘But our biggest problem, the insurmountable issue that means that whatever those photographs appeared to show, the finds can’t have originated from our site, is that the figure and both of the swords have been chemically treated to prevent corrosion.’

Clare’s head was spinning. ‘But there were still traces of mud on the figure. I saw it for myself.’

‘Exactly. And there was mud on the hilt of one of the swords too. I’m not saying that those finds have never been on our site. Those photographs prove that they have. But that is most definitely not where they started life. And nor is it where they have been until relatively recently.’