NHER 50078 (Monument record) - Post-medieval ditch or pit and medieval to early modern finds

April-May 2007. Trial Trenching.
Excavation of two trial trenches in advance of construction of new dwellings recorded several post-medieval to modern features.
The southernmost trench revealed a roughly north-south ditch containing post-medieval pottery, ceramic building material, and part of a clay pipe. This likely dates to the late post-medieval period and functioned as a drainage ditch. This ditch had truncated a shallow, irregular hollow that contained a sherd of post-medieval pottery, but the hollow is thought to be of natural origins. The only other features within this trench were identified as two small pits and a short length of gully but these appear to have been formed very recently and are likely related to use of this area as an allotment. Finds from the topsoil included a copper alloy object, a fragment of post-medieval pottery, and a fragment of post-medieval ceramic building material.
The northern trench recorded a large, shallow pit most likely associated with horticultural activity and a later linear feature interpreted as either a planting trench or an in-filled natural channel. The pit contained a clay silt deposit that produced three sherds of post-medieval pottery and seven fragments of medieval/post-medieval ceramic building material and the fill of the trench contained two small fragments of possibly post-medieval ceramic building material. The topsoil in this trench was heavily disturbed and contained a single sherd of post-medieval pottery. Several deposits of cockle shell were present at the base of the topsoil.
See report (S1) for further details. See also (S2).
The associated archive has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2017.119).
H. White (NLA), 12 November 2008. Updated by H. Hamilton (HES), 14 November 2014 and P. Watkins (HES), 18 May 2019.

May 2012. Trial trench.
Excavation of one trial trench in advance of construction of a new dwelling recorded a portion of a large ditch or pit dated to the 19th to 20th century. The feature has been interpreted as a possible drainage feature and contained three fragments of 19th century or later pottery, a small quantity of post-medieval roof tile and brick, one small fragment of medieval brick, and a piece of bottle glass.
See report (S3) for further details.
The associated archive has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2017.153).
H. Hamilton (HES), 30 July 2013.