“The Bronze Age barrows at Greenwich are old, but they are not the most ancient ritual site to be found in London. In 2010, archaeologists took a closer look at a group of wooden posts jutting out of the Thames mud near Vauxhall Bridge. These posts, originally about the size of telegraph poles, can be seen at low tide in front of the MI6 building. They were found to be over 6,000 years old, making them by far the oldest structure ever found in London, erected thousands of years before the stones of Stonehenge were set into place.”

Simon Webb's book, Unearthing London: The Ancient World Beneath the Metropolis, is out now. More here - http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2011/aug/12/londons-ancient-history