A group of volunteers, led by archeologist Ted Higginbotham, spent six days this past week dredging through soil and clay at the historic farm that was established by John and Elizabeth Macarthur in the early 1800s.

In a similar dig at the property last year, the archaeologists found evidence of two of three buildings that were sketched onto a 1840s estate plan, as well as the ``small miserable hut'' used as Mrs Macarthur's first residence.

Last week, a survey of the topsoil led to the discovery of the third building identified on the estate plan as well as two others that historians and archaeologist knew nothing about.

``There's nothing in historical documentation about them,'' Dr Higginbotham said.

``We will tell what the buildings were used for from the artefacts we recovered within them.

``And there's structural information as well. If we get a fireplace in a two-room building, it's going to be a residence.

``Dimensions will tell us if it's a standard colonial hut.''

Among the artefacts was evidence of domestic use, such as glassware and ceramics.

``We've got evidence of children in terms of marbles and we've also got evidence of writing that is, literacy.

``What we've got at the moment are fragmented slate writing tablets.''

Dr Higginbotham said the slate tablets were most likely used by children when they were learning to read and write.

A small medallion from a rosary, with a sacred heart on it, offered clues as to who might have occupied one of the buildings possibly a Catholic female.

``So if you're getting Catholic females in this house, it's clearly not Mr and Mrs Macarthur,'' Dr Higginbotham said.

``It's going to be possibly a female servant of the wife of, say, an estate worker who might have lived in one [of the buildings].''