NHER 60810 (Monument record) - Undated ditches

September-October 2006. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetometry survey of two areas on proposed route of A47 Blofield to North Burlingham dualling.
Examination of two adjacent blocks at northern edge of site (Areas F and G).
The results were greatly affected by magnetic disturbance caused by a metal service pipe running along the northern edge of the field.
It was however possible to identify two fragmentary linear anomalies in the western block that were potentially archaeologically significant.
See report (S1) for further details. The results of this work are also summarised in (S2).
An archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2016.297).
Previously recorded under NHER 39847.
P. Watkins (HES), 10 June 2015.

January 2007.
Environmental Statement produced (S3).
P. Watkins (HES), 10 June 2015.

March 2018. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetometer survey on route of proposed A47 Blofield to North Burlingham upgrade works.
Examination of area to south of block investigated in 2006 (Area BLO4).
No anomalies of obvious archaeological interest were identified.
A number of discrete low magnitude anomalies are thought to be the result of changes in the underlying natural geology.
Small, scattered ferrous anomalies are likely to represent modern ferrous debris within the topsoil.
Information from report uploaded to OASIS. HER copy awaited.
P. Watkins (HES), 29 March 2021.

May-July 2020. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of route of proposed A47 Blofield to North Burlingham upgrade works (Trenches 40-45).
The six trenches excavated at this location revealed only a small number of archaeologically-significant features. The most notable of these was what appeared to be a particularly substantial north-west to south-east aligned ditch in the central part of the site that was almost 3m wide and around 1m deep. No clear dating evidence was recovered, finds being limited to a small number of prehistoric worked flints, burnt flints, fired clay and a single fragment of iron slag. A sample taken from its uppermost fill produced charcoal but little else in the way of charred plant macrofossils. The orientation of this feature is notably at odds with that of the surrounding present and former field boundaries, suggesting it was potentially of some antiquity.
A nearby north-to-south aligned linear feature was interpreted as a modern plough furrow but can be seen to coincide with a former field boundary depicted on the Burlingham St Andrew tithe map of 1838 (S4). Two similarly-aligned ditches were recorded in the trenches to the west, one of which may correspond with one of the linear geophysical anomalies identified in 2006.
A post-medieval jetton was the only unstatified find of note.
See report (S5) for further details.
An archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2020.103).
P. Watkins (HES), 29 March 2021. Amended 27 July 2023.