NHER 11552 (Cropmark and Earthwork record) - Undated cropmarks

Aerial photography. 1974.
1974 (S1). - Linear cropmark running from building on main road to Elm House. In parts apparently double so perhaps an old road. Crossing it from 49000289 to 49140318 is another linear feature connecting two field boundaries.
E. Rose (NAU) 1975.

Overlay drawing shows that second feature mentioned is part of a series of field boundaries which are part of the modern layout, and so are not numbered. But the primary linear cropmark is clearly not associated with these.
E. Rose (NAU) 4 November 1983. -

The central grid reference for this site has been altered from TG 4929 0302 to TG 4926 0298.

November 2006. Norfolk NMP.
The cropmarks of an area of post medieval roads, tracks and field boundaries are visible on aerial photographs to the east of Belton village (S2-S6). The site is centred on TG 4926 0298. of these boundaries in part correspond with fields marked on the 1838 Belton Tithe map (S7), or represent earlier phases of the post medieval layout.

All of the linear features referred to above appear to be former field boundaries, whilst it is possible that the multiple ditched boundary acted as a road or track, as suggested above, no definite evidence of this was produced by the aerial photographs. Other linears recorded under this site, such as the intermittent parchmark flanked by two ditches, running from TG 4897 0331 to TG 4951 0350, does appear to represent a former track or road. This is not marked on the 1838 Tithe map (S7) and had presumably gone out of use by this date. Another cropmark track is seen to led off from ‘Lawn’s Lane’ to the south, again this is not marked on the Tithe map.
S. Massey (NMP), 07 November 2006.

March-May 2017. Strip Map and Sample Excavation.
Excavation of pipeline easement through two fields to south of New Road.
The four narrow strips excavated coincided with two of the north-north-east to south-south-west aligned cropmarks in this group, both of which were found to have corresponding sub-surface features. A single sherd of 19th-century pottery was recovered from one of these ditches but the other produced no finds. A number of other, similarly-aligned ditches that had not been visible as cropmarks were probably also post-medieval in date.
See report (S8) and NHER 62731 for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 9 May 2018.

March 2023. Assessment of the Character and Significance of East Anglian Field Systems project.
The site described above was included in the dataset analysed for the Historic England-funded Assessment of East Anglian Field Systems project. See the project report (S9) for further details.
S. Tremlett (Norfolk County Council Environment Team), 22 March 2023.