Editing Colchester (section)

===Prehistory===
The gravel hill upon which Colchester is built was formed in the [[Middle Pleistocene]] period and was shaped into a [[River terrace|terrace]] between the [[Anglian glaciation]] and the [[Ipswichian]] [[glaciation]] by an ancient precursor to the [[River Colne, Essex|River Colne]].<ref name="Crummy, Philip 1992">Crummy, Philip (1992) Colchester Archaeological Report 6: Excavations at Culver Street, the Gilberd School, and other sites in Colchester 1971–85. Published by Colchester Archaeological Trust ({{ISBN|0-9503727-9-X}})</ref> From these deposits [[Paleolithic|Palaeolithic]] [[Stone tool|flint tools]], including at least six [[Acheulian]] [[handaxes]], have been found.<ref name="Crummy, Philip 1992"/> Further flint tools made by [[hunter gatherer]]s living in the Colne Valley during the [[Mesolithic]] have been discovered, including a [[tranchet axe]] from Middlewick.<ref name="Crummy, Philip 1992"/><ref>Wymer, J. (ed.) "Gazetteer of Mesolithic sites in England and Wales", in CBA Research Report 20</ref> In the 1980s an archaeological inventory showed that over 800 shards of pottery from the [[Neolithic]], [[Bronze Age]] and early [[Iron Age]] have been found within Colchester, along with many examples of [[Flint tool|worked flint]].<ref name="Crummy, Philip 1992"/> This included a pit found at Culver Street containing a ritually placed Neolithic [[grooved ware]] pot,<ref name="Crummy, Philip 1992"/> as well as find spots containing later [[Deverel-Rimbury culture|Deverel-Rimbury bucket urns]].<ref name="Crummy, Philip 1992"/> Colchester is surrounded by Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments that pre-date the town, including a Neolithic [[henge]] at [[Tendring, Essex|Tendring]], large [[Tumulus|Bronze Age barrow cemeteries]] at [[Dedham, Essex|Dedham]] and [[Langham, Essex|Langham]], and a larger example at [[Brightlingsea]] consisting of a cluster of 22 barrows.<ref>Strachan, David (1998) Essex from the Air, Archaeology and history from aerial photographs. Published by Essex County Council ({{ISBN|1 85281 165 X}})</ref>