NHER 5688 (Monument record) - Medieval moated site and Santon deserted medieval village at St Helen's picnic site

Earthworks of deserted medieval village and moated manorial site.

1975. Casual find.
Medieval sherds.

1979. Casual find.
Medieval sherds.

1985. Casual find.
Medieval sherds and flint flake.

1987. Casual find.
Medieval sherds.

1988 to 1989. Casual finds.
Medieval sherds.

1990 and 1991.
Worked flints, medieval and post medieval sherds.

April 1995. Earthwork Survey and Archaeological Assessment.
Other than the well defined moat the surface remains are of limited extent and form.
Medieval sherds and tile found.
See report (S1) for further details and copy of plan (S4).
A. Rogerson (NLA) 30 March 1997.

September 1999. Watching Brief.
Maintained during construction of wheelchair access, path extensions and dredging operations at Santon moated site.
No archaeological finds or features observed.
No report produced.
C.F. Mecksepper (NAU), 22 May 2000. Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 8 February 2017.

2002.
Scheduled Ancient Monument Management Plan March 2002 to March 2007.
See (S2).
D. Gurney (NLA), 24 April 2002.

Before 27 February 2003.
One base sherd of post-medieval glazed red earthenware.
One undated irregular fragment of lead.
Undated bi-conical lead weight (46.55g) with central perforation.
See (S3) in file.
E. Darch (NLA), 25 November 2003.

On or before 1 January 2024. Stray Find. [1].
1 prehistoric flint flake.
1 Neolithic flint flake.
20 post-medieval flint flakes.
2 ?post-medieval flint flakes.
Information from PAS import.
A. Cattermole (NLA), 22 November 2010 and P. Watkins (HES), 24 January 2026.

January/February 2004. Surface finds in disturbed ground near car park.
Roman, Late Saxon, medieval and post medieval sherds.
See lists in file.
A. Rogerson (NLA), 16 March 2004.

March 2014. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetic and electromagnetic surveys of parkland to west, north and north-east of site of All Saint’s Church.
The small number of potentially archaeologically-significant responses include a north-north-east to south-south-west aligned linear anomaly at TL 82664 87303 that curves to the east of its northern end. This is interpreted as a possible ditch or robber trench. Another linear anomaly immediately to the north may represent a further ditch or structure. A curvilinear anomaly at TL 82596 87334 may also be archaeologically significant, potentially surrounding a discrete 'pit-like' anomaly.
Two north-north-east to south-south-west aligned magnetic anomalies correspond with former field boundaries. The easternmost of these coincides with a tree-lined boundary shown on the Ordnance Survey First Edition Six-inch map (S5).
The majority of the anomalies detected by both surveys are directly related to the site's recent use as a recreational area, with linear anomalies corresponding to extant paths and other responses associated with a car park area, metal bins and an underground services pipe. The toilet block is also associated with a large area of disturbance.
An area of enhanced magnetic anomalies in the south-west corner of the site is likely to represent a spread of modern debris and various discrete dipolar anomalies are also probably associated with modern debris.
See report (S6) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 24 September 2024.

August 2017. 'Brecks from Above' and Breckland National Mapping Programme.
The medieval to post-medieval moated site described above is visible as an earthwork on aerial photographs (such as (S7) and (S8)), and on imagery from a recent lidar survey (S9). Banks and a rectilinear platform are visible on the island within the moat; these represent the remains of buildings which once occupied the site. A series of boundary features, together with two irregularly-shaped pits, are visible in the area surrounding the moat. Their date and function are not known; they could relate to the medieval settlement of Santon, but are not immediately recognisable as settlement features. As many of the features were mapped from 1940s aerial photographs, it is possible that some have since been levelled.
S. Tremlett (Norfolk Historic Environment Service), 2 August 2017.