NHER 36405 (Cropmark and Earthwork record) - Cropmarks of enclosure of unknown date

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Summary

The cropmarks of an incomplete rectilinear enclosure and associated ditches of unknown, but possibly Roman date, is visible on aerial photographs to the east of Drayton Wood Hotel. The possible enclosure follows the same alignment as the field system and series of trackways to the north (NHER 18192), which may be Roman in date. It is therefore possible that the two sites are contemporary.

Protected Status/Designation

  • None recorded

Location

Map sheet TG11SE
Civil Parish HORSFORD, BROADLAND, NORFOLK

Map

This site has previously been confused with NHER 36415, refer to this record if details to not correspond as expected.

19 June 1996. NLA air photography.
Cropmarks of enclosure visible. The site appears to have been cut by recent developments and woodland, although the shape suggests it would have been rectilinear originally.
See (S1).
S. Massey (NLA), 13 August 2001.

September 2010. Norfolk NMP.
The cropmarks of an incomplete rectilinear enclosure and associated ditches of unknown, but possibly Roman date, is visible on aerial photographs to the east of Drayton Wood Hotel (S1-S2). The site is centred on TG 1983 1301. Only two sides of the possible rectilinear enclosure are visible, measuring up at least 50m by 66m. The aerial photographs indicate that a pipeline has bisected the enclosure. The monument polygon has been extended to the north to take in the area of fragmentary ditch-like cropmarks visible in the far ground (S3), however these were not mapped as it was felt that they may relate to geological cropmarks. The possible enclosure follows the same alignment as the field system and series of trackways to the north (NHER 18192), which may be Roman in date. It is therefore possible that the two sites are contemporary.
S. Horlock (NMP), 29 September 2010.

August-September 2011. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of large proposed development area.
This work failed to find any evidence for surviving sub-surface remains associated with these fragmentary cropmarks. It should though be noted that the trenches appear to have only definitely coincided with one of the cropmarks.
See report (S3) and NHER 55849 for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 30 January 2021.

September 2025. Record reviewed as part of the Forestry Commission Project K
The cropmarks of the incomplete rectilinear enclosure (centred at approximately TG 1981 1291) mapped by the NMP survey (see above) are also faintly visible as cropmarks on Google Earth imagery from 2011 (S4).
J. Powell (Norfolk County Council Environment Service), 10 September 2025

  • <S1> Oblique Aerial Photograph: Edwards, D.A. (NLA). 1996. NHER TG 1912A - B (NLA 362/JDR12-13) 19-JUN-1996.
  • <S2> Vertical Aerial Photograph: RAF. 1962. RAF 543/1883 (F22) 0127-8 27-SEP-1962 (NMR).
  • <S3> Unpublished Contractor Report: Crawley, P. 2011. Archaeological Evaluation at Canhams Hill, Reepham Road, Drayton, Norfolk. NPS Archaeology. 2778.
  • <S4> Vertical Aerial Photograph: Google Earth. ? - present. Google Earth Orthophotographs. https://earth.google.com/web. 25-MAY-2011 Accessed 10-SEP-2025.

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Related NHER Records (0)

Record last edited

Sep 10 2025 10:05AM

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