NHER 43427 (Monument record) - Undated cropmarks, possibly field boundaries or drainage ditches

September 2005. Norfolk NMP.
A group of undated cropmarks, possibly representing field boundaries or drainage ditches, is visible on aerial photographs to the north of Hempstead Marshes and to the east of Heath Road, Lessingham (S1-S3). The site is centred on TG 4150 2789, although this point represents a point in-between two areas of cropmarks, centred on TG 4141 2806 and TG 4159 2769. The date of these cropmarks is not known, although it is possible if they are field boundaries that they are Iron Age in date. Two groups of cropmarks to the west (NHER 43386 and 42423) have also been interpreted as Iron Age to Roman fields and these follow a similar alignment. However it is also possible that some of these cropmarks may relate to drainage ditches as they are located at the low-lying former fen areas.

The cropmarks are all quite faint and fragmentary. Both areas of cropmarks, but in particular those to the immediate north of the Hempstead Marshes are located on the peaty soils and are positioned on the upper edge of the alluvial and fen deposits associated with the Thurne Valley. Therefore it must be borne in mind that some of these linear features may be related to drainage. The northern part of this area is marked as Sea Common and Eccles Common on Faden’s map of 1797 (S4). An area of slightly higher ground has been depicted in the vicinity of the northern cropmarks, so it is possible that these were raised up from the surrounding valley floor fens. To the immediate east of this higher ground an area of open water is depicted and this is possibly a former Broad (NHER 43428). The northern area of cropmarks is located within an irregular shaped area of land which has been depicted as separate from the surrounding fen on the 1812 Hempstead Enclosure map (S5). This suggests that a portion of the common has been enclosed in-between the surveying of Faden’s map and the Enclosure map (S4-S5). This could also be taken to indicate that this area was also slightly raised up from the valley floor.
S. Massey (NMP), 13 September 2005.