NHER 22311 (Monument record) - Multi-period prehistoric finds and Roman pot sherd

4 April 1951. Stray Find.
Found by F. Curtis at Context 6 [7]:
Part of cutting edge of polished stone axe to form a miniature chipped axe but retaining some polished surface at cutting edge. Petrology N165.
Previously recorded as NHER 5176.
T. Clough (NCM). Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 3 November 2013.

15 April 1957. Stray Find.
Found by F. Curtis at Context 3 [8]; Curtis Field 21C:
Polished stone axe (Curtis catalogue No. 59). Petrology N160. Previously recorded as NHER 5180.
T. Clough (NCM). Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 3 November 2013.

1963. Stray Find.
Found by [2] at Context 8 [9]:
1 Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age flint barbed and tanged arrowhead. See drawing (S6).
Previously recorded as NHER 5181.
E. B. Green (NCM).

1964. Stray Find.
Found by [3] at Context 2 [10]:
Leaf shaped arrowhead. Windmill Hill type.
Previously recorded as NHER 5172.

At Context 5 [11]:
Small flint axe made of rechipped end of polished axe.
Previously recorded as NHER 5173.
E. B. Green (NCM). Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 3 November 2013.

9 March 1986. Fenland Project Fieldwalking.
Weathered ploughsoil. Several discrete concentrations of material identified:

Context 1.
Site FWL ED (Context 1).
One Roman sherd (archive). This site is not mentioned in the final report.

Site FWL 160 (Context 10 at [12]).
On and around small hollow, originally peat filled. Concentration pot boilers, moderate to abundant locally, couple of worked flints. Max dimensions 36m east to west x 23m north to south.

Site FWL 161 (Context 11 at [13]).
On edge of peat filled hollow. Concentration pot boilers sparse to moderate, few worked flints. Max dimensions 40m north to south x 14m east to west.

Site FWL 162 (Context 12 at [14]).
At end of loam ridge edged by peat channels. Concentration pot boilers moderate to abundant. Max diameter 25m.

For further details see project archive (S1) and final publication (S2).
R. Silvester (NAU), 7 March 1986. Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 3 November 2013.

Pre 1992. Stray Finds.
Two objects in the Secker Collection were recovered in this field at an unknown date:
1 polished flint axehead, broken at the butt end (No. 328) (S8).
1 polished flint axe, broken at butt end which has been narrowed by the removal of lateral flakes. (S7)
See descriptions and sketches by P. Robins (NCM) in file.
E. Whitcombe (NLA), 12 February 2010. Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 3 November 2013.

Pre 1996.
An examination of various privately-held collections and their catalogues by F. Healy identified a range of additional prehistoric objects that are recorded as having been recovered in this area. A proportion of these finds are listed in (S3), with much more comprehensive lists appearing in (S4). All finds numbers given below are those assigned by the collectors themselves.

A large number of additional worked flints were recorded in the Curtis Catalogue. The following objects are recorded as being from Curtis Field 21 C (the western half of this field):
1 ?Mesolithic 'microlith'. Abruptly retouched piece catalogued as a microlith.
2 Neolithic leaf arrowheads (found 1954-1956).
1 Neolithic triangular arrowhead (found in 1958 at TL 6902 8992).
4 Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age barbed and tanged arrowhead (1 Conygar serrated type found at Tl 6899 8996 and 3 (including Low Green type) found 1954-1956).
1 blade (Coll. No. 667; found at TL 6908 8997).

Objects recorded as being from Curtis Field 21B (the eastern half of this field) include:
1 Mesolithic 'microlith' (found 1953-1963).
2 Neolithic leaf arrowheads (found 1953-1963).
3 Neolithic 'harpoon barbs' (presumably transverse arrowheads; found 1953-1963).
1 Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age dagger with tang (found in 1956 at TL 6917 8996).
2 Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age barbed and tanged arrowhead (one found in 1953 at TL 6902 8993, the other a serrated Green Low type found 1953-1963).
1 blade (found 1957 at TL 6915 8995).
1 scraper (found 1953-1963).
6 'ovate knives' (found 1953-1963).
4 borers (found 1953-1963).
1 adze (found 1953-1963).
20 other (unspecified) implements (found 1953-1963).
A number of additional objects are listed by (S4) as coming from this field, but with no Curtis Field listed. These include:
12 Neolithic leaf arrowheads.
1 Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age barbed and tanged arrowhead.
3 Neolithic axes.

A number of Curtis' finds from these fields were examined by R. Jacobi and several are listed as potentially early prehistoric in (S5). These include one object that was identified as a Late Glacial (Upper Palaeolithic) shouldered point (Field 21C), which is presumably the piece listed by Healy as an abruptly retouched ?microlith. It is also noted in (S5) that the assemblages from Field 21B and Field 22B included a number of potentially Mesolithic long, punch-struck blades.

A number of the objects collected by Frank Curtis are now held by the King's Lynn Museum. At least some of these finds are likely to be correspond with those listed in his catalogue. The following objects are recorded as being from Curtis Field 21 C (the western half of this field):
1 ?Mesolithic single-platform blade core. Heavily corticated.
2 Neolithic leaf arrowheads (KILLM : 2001.768.7; KILLM : 2001.768.9).
1 Neolithic chisel arrowhead (KILLM : 2001.768.14).
1 flake.
9 scrapers (including KILLM : 2001.713).
1 'scale-flaked' knife.
Objects recorded as being from Curtis Field 21B (the eastern half of this field) include:
1 Neolithic leaf arrowhead (KILLM : 2001.768.8).
3 scrapers.
1 adze. Flaked with parallel sides.

A number of flint objects from the western half of this field (old O.S field 730, Curtis Field 21C) were identified in the collection of [5] (possibly originally collected by F. Curtis?). These included:
2 Mesolithic microliths. Obliquely blunted points (Coll. Nos 648, 649). Also noted in (S5).
1 Neolithic chisel arrowhead.
1 Neolithic flaked axehead fragment.
1 Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age plano-convex knife.
1 core.
1 flake.
4 scrapers.
2 'scale-flaked' knives.
1 fabricator.
2 misc. retouched pieces.

Records exist of several objects that were found in this area by [4] prior to 1981.
Found at TL 6910 8995 (Context 4):
1 Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age barbed and tanged arrowhead (Coll. No. 176). Length with tang 33m, width 23mm.
1 polished flint borer, length 47mm, shank 21mm, top width 26mm (Coll. No. 176).
Found at TL 6905 8998 (Context 3):
1 flint borer length 28mm, width shank 8mm, top 20mm (Coll. No. 199).
1 bone polishing tool, bevelled. length 95mm, width 33mm, 4mm thick (Coll. No. 292).
Found at TL 6902 9003:
1 Neolithic ground axe.
Several objects found together at TL 6907 9004:
2 Neolithic ground axes. Ground on cutting edges and over part of body.
1 'polissoir' polishing stone. A subrectangular sandstone object, dished and in the the size range of saddle querns.
Also, from an unrecorded location:
1 'scale-flaked' knife.
Healy also examined a large collection of additional objects in this finder's collection that were recorded as coming from either this field or the field to the north. These finds are recorded seperately as NHER 59669. It is possible that some of these finds (particularly the axes) are those noted above.

Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 3 November 2013.