ARCHAEOLOGICAL director Mike Emery believes new evidence shows a direct link between his dig south of Chester and Stonehenge.

His team has uncovered a 4,500 year-old limestone plaque at the Poulton excavation, bearing a mysterious crisscross pattern.

The closest parallel is a chalk plaque found in 1969 on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, just 1km from Stonehenge. The markings were made with a flint tool and flint from Salisbury Plain has previously been found on site.

“There has obviously been contact between the two areas,” said Mike. "There has got to have been trading of some kind."