SLOUGH’S Salt Hill, believed to be the remains of a Norman castle motte for centuries, actually dates back 1,500 years and is likely to be the grave of a high ranking official, archaeologists have revealed.

University of Reading experts said that the hill, which is a 20ft mound at the front of the Ice Arena in Montem Lane, is far older than previously thought, after they used carbon-dating on soil samples.

The hill is officially called Montem Mound but locally took its name from the bizarre Eton College ceremony which was abolished in 1857 and saw school boys scattered with salt as part of their initiation.

The research reveals that in fact the hill dates back to between the fifth and seventh centuries, not long after the collapse of the Roman Empire.

It also dates roughly to the same time of the famous Anglo-Saxon burial mounds in Sutton Hoo in Suffolk and the nearby burial mound in Taplow.

The University said the ‘Sutton Hoo of Slough’ was remarkable as only a handful of mounds from the period are known about. It pointed out it was likely to be “the resting place of someone of high status and could contain artefacts”.

Dr Jim Leary, the University of Reading archaeologist who led the investigation, said: “Conventional wisdom placed the Montem Mound 500 years later, in the Norman period.

“But we have shown that it dates to between the fifth and seventh centuries, not long after the collapse of Roman Empire.

“This is a time of heroic myth and legend where archaeology fills the gaps of the historic record.

“This discovery will add so much more to our understanding of the people who lived in Britain at this time. It will also extend our knowledge of the history of Slough.”

The hill is already a statutory Scheduled Ancient Monument, which protects it from development. The archaeological investigations at the site, which took place in December last year, were agreed with Historic England and involved a novel technique to drill into and date mottes in England for the first time.

The area was conquered by Mercia in the early seventh century, probably under the rule of a Kentish sub-King. Slough Borough Council plans to put up a new information board about its historical significance.