To build on that buzz, and to mark National Archaeology Week, a clutch of city pupils were amazed to find pre-historic objects buried under their school fields.

But they were even more astounded to find out Orton Longueville School, in Oundle Road, Peterborough, was built on an ancient Roman site.

The nugget of information revealed to them by science teacher Andrew Crysell left the youngsters wide-eyed – and eager to unearth coins and other items from that era.

Mr Crysell said far from being dry and irrelevant, archaeology was vital to help uncover information about other cultures.

He said: "They were so enthusiastic. They wanted to find stuff. Archaeology is not on the national curriculum, but with it changing, the advantage is, we can bring things in.

"I think it is very important the distant past that wasn't written down. And a lot of it can be found in their back gardens."

The group, including 19 pupils, dug four test pits, which were one metre square trenches, to test how deep the soil was and see if there was anything of archaeological interest on the site where future school buildings are planned.

Mr Crysell said: "That would have been done, but we put our business and enterprise hat on and thought we would do it anyway.

"The pupils used spades and trowels and half way through the day, we found some 20th-century pottery – as well as some 21st-century sweet wrappers.

"But we also found what we think is a prehistoric flint core. It had bits chipped off to make tools and must be from about 15,000BC.

"It was pretty exciting because we didn't know there would be anything of that age at the school. We do have a Roman building under the school site.

"It was excavated in the late '50s and they found a mosaic floor, bath house and furnaces. They were not sure if it was an industrial building or part of a house.

"The rest remains to be excavated."

He will now write a report cataloguing all the finds and hand it to Peterborough Museum.

Nichola Stephens (15) said her first experience of a dig had left her wanting to find out more.

She said: "I didn't expect to do this at school and I didn't realise it was built on a Roman site.

"One of the boys in my group wants to be an archaeologist, and it's made me interested in it."

Matthew Clark (13) said: "It's been pretty fun. We found some pottery and flint. I would really like to find a coin."

National Archaeology Week, which runs until Sunday, aims to encourage everyone, and especially young people and their families to visit sites of archaeological or historical interest or museums, heritage and resource centres, to see archaeology in action and to take part in activities on-site.

External link:
National Archaeology Week - www.nationalarchaeologyweek.org.uk.