NHER 11504 (Find Spot record) - Unprovenanced Palaeolithic and ?Mesolithic worked flints, Crown Point (?Trowse with Newton, poorly located)

Finds recorded as being from "Crown Point".

Palaeolithic finds:

The British Museum holds a number of worked flints of supposedly Palaeolithic date that were are recorded as having been excavated at "Crown Point, Whitlingham" (2011,8095.840-845; 2011,8095.848; ex A. T. Marston). These objects are noted on (S1), although this is simply a reference to the British Museum collection. Little additional information is recorded, apart from a note that these flints were "excavated".

As noted on (S1), the location of this site or area is unclear, not least as the provenance is apparently contradictory. "Crown Point" would suggest the area in the vicinity of former Crown Point Hall (NHER 9696; TG 255 069; now Whitlingham Hospital), in Trowse with Newton parish, whilst "Whitlingham" suggests an area in the northern part of the adjacent parish of Kirby Bedon. Assuming these flints were recovered from an open pit then there are a number of possible sources in both areas. At Whitlingham a number of different pits were open close to the River Yare during the late 19th century and early 20th century, and it possible that one of these was "Crown Point". It is however more likely that the source of these finds lay somewhere in the vicinity of Crown Point Hall, particularly as several large pits were also open in this area during the same period. These include a large pit that lay adjacent to a lime kiln (NHER 16706) at the southern edge of Crown Point Park, opposite the Crown Point Public House (NHER 48681). It is possible that this is the "chalk-pit, near Crown Point" that Woodward describes in (S2).

The potentially Palaeolithic objects themselves are listed in the museum's records as 1 handaxe, 62 flakes and 7 cores. This material was examined by J. J. Wymer who noted on (S3) that whilst the flakes were "not necessarily Palaeolithic" the collection did indeed include the broken butt of a small handaxe. The collection is recorded on (S1) as comprising "Lower Pal. Flakes and cores" as well as "…natural flints thought manmade by Marston".

Mesolithic and later finds:

The British Museum also holds a small number of potentially Mesolithic worked flints with the same "Crown Point, Whitlingham" provenance (2011,8095.894; also ex A. T. Marston). Information from (S4), which records these as being surface finds. The museum's records list these objects simply as debitage and burnt flint. It is noted on (S4) that these flints were associated with a number of large ?fish bones.

According to (S5) this British Museum's Marston collection also includes large a very decayed iron object of possible Roman date. This is also recorded as being from Crown Point.

Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 1 March 2016.