NHER 61117 (Monument record) - Prehistoric, potentially medieval to post-medieval and undated remains

2004-2005. Desk-based Assessment.
Archaeological assessment of western route options for Norwich Northern Distributor Road.
See reports (S1) and (S2) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 4 July 2019.

March-June 2009. Geophysical Survey
Magnetometer survey on proposed line of the Norwich Northern Distributor Road (Site T8).
Site examined in order to help established the eastern extent of archaeological remains identified in field to west (NHER 63375).
None of the anomalies detected were of obvious archaeological significance. A north-west to south-east aligned positive linear anomaly at the eastern end of this area almost certainly represents a former field boundary on the line of the Taverham/Drayton parish boundary.
A series of weak positive linear anomalies were probably associated with modern cultivation practices. Weak, small, discrete positive anomalies may be an effect of the geology or past cultivation practices.
This largely negative result is consistent with the cropmark evidence for this field (NHER 52384), which also suggests that dense remains are probably only present to the west of Furze Lane. It should though be noted that there was also no evidence for features associated with the three linear cropmarks mapped within the area examined.
See report (S3) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 2 August 2015.

April 2010. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of site on proposed line of Norwich Northern Distributor Road (Site T8).
All of the three trenches excavated revealed archaeologically significant remains. The most notable features were two small, adjacent pits or post-holes identified in the westernmost trench, both of which produced assemblages of Middle Bronze Age pottery (Biconical Urn sherds, possible from a single vessel). A small number of worked flints and a single burnt quartzitic pebble were also recovered from these features. The features identified in the other two trenches included a ditch and three fairly unremarkable pits; none of which produced any dating evidence.
See report (S4) for further details. The results of this work are also summarised in (S5).
P. Watkins (HES), 3 August 2015.

April-August 2015. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of site on proposed line of Norwich Northern Distributor Road (Field T8).
The 28 trenches excavated in this field exposed a number of potentially archaeologically significant features although these were fairly widely dispersed and mostly undated.
There was some limited evidence for prehistoric activity on the site, although the only feature that could be tentatively dated to this period was a probable tree-throw hollow that produced scraps of grog-tempered Bronze Age pottery (possibly Early Bronze Age) and a small amount of burnt flint. Other prehistoric finds recovered included several Mesolithic/Early Neolithic and ?Late Neolithic worked flints and an unusual polished greenstone mace head of probable Late Neolithic or Early Bronze Age date.
An extensive pair of parallel north-west to south-east aligned ditches at the eastern end of the field correspond with the linear anomaly identified during the 2009 geophysical survey and were almost certainly associated with the Taverham/Drayton parish boundary (the line of which was marked by a field boundary at this point until at least the late 19th century). The ditches identified elsewhere were all of uncertain date and displayed a variety of alignments. At least two did however appear to be correspond with cropmarks mapped at this location (a north-west to south-east aligned ditch at TG 1676 1578 and a north-east to south-west feature at TG 1691 1578, both recorded under NHER 52384). Finds were limited to a single abraded sherd of Roman pottery.
Other discrete features included several possible post-holes, one of which was reasonably substantial and contained burnt flints.
See report (S7) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 15 May 2019.

January-September 2016. Strip Map and Sample Excavation.
Excavation of site on route of Norwich Northern Distributor Road (Area 1 East).
This phase of work saw the excavation of a block of land immediately to the east of Furze Lane.
The limited number of features exposed included a north-west to south-east ditch and a fairly dispersed scatter of discrete features, the majority of which were present in a band along the southern edge of the area investigated. In marked contrast to the site to the west (NHER 63375) there was no evidence for activity adjacent to Furze Lane.
The discrete features were mostly of probable natural origin and produced few finds. The principal exception was a probable tree-throw hollow that produced a small assemblage of Late Neolithic Grooved Ware pottery. An adjacent feature also produced a small amount of possible Early Bronze Age pottery.
The ditch was first investigated during the preceding trial trenching and corresponds with one of the previously identified cropmark features. At the eastern edge of the excavation area a line of post-holes was identified that appear to stop at the ditch suggesting these formed some kind of contemporary boundary. It is suggested that the ditch was also potentially broadly contemporary with a similarly-aligned pair of parallel ditches exposed during excavations to the west of Furze Lane. Although all of these features produced few finds a Bronze Age date has been tentatively suggested for the group, primarily due to the similarity of the post-hole line to boundaries present on a Bronze Age site excavated to the east. The fact that two ditches are only present on one side of Furze Lane would though seem to make this unlikely and it was noted during the review of the cropmark evidence that the single ditch present on this site is parallel with the nearby parish boundary and therefore perhaps most likely post-Roman in date.
Information from draft assessment report. HER copy awaited.
P. Watkins (HES), 15 May 2019.

May 2019. Desk-based Assessment.
Assessment of potential archaeological impact of large proposed development.
See report (S7) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 4 April 2026.

April and September 2022. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetometer survey of part of large proposed development site to south of Norwich Northern Distributor Road (Area 8).
The most notable responses are two north-north-east to south-south-west aligned linear anomalies, which continue the line of anomalies seen in the field immediately to the south (NHER 69800). Both correspond with linear cropmarks visible on aerial photographs and thought to represent field boundaries of Iron Age to Roman or later date (part of a group recorded as NHER 52384). A shorter linear anomaly that appears to branch off the western feature has also been recorded as a cropmark.
There was little other evidence for archaeologically-significant remains. Although a small number of other linear anomalies were recorded these are all fragmentary, irregular and regarded as being of undetermined origin.
Various discrete anomalies and areas of magnetic disturbance are all though to be either natural in origin or the result of recent activity.
There was no evidence for surviving sub-surface remains associated with a group of north-north-west to south-south-east aligned linear cropmarks at TG 1715 1553 thought to potentially represent a trackway or curving ditches (NHER 52385).
See report (S8) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 4 April 2026.

July-September 2025. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of part of large proposed development site to south of Norwich Northern Distributor Road (Trenches 80-117).
The 38 trenches excavated at this location revealed a relatively small number of scattered linear and discrete features, by far the most notable of which was a prehistoric pit in the south-east corner of the site. This contained a large assemblage of Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age pottery, what were likely to be contemporary worked flints and a considerable quantity of burnt flint (almost 19kg). Samples taken from the fills of the pit contained hazelnut shell fragments, wheat and barley grains and amorphous charred fragments that potentially represent burnt dung or food. The pottery from this feature appears to represent at least eight vessels, two of which had unusually large rim diameters. The worked flints consist largely of flakes and other knapping waste, with four end scrapers the only finished implements identified. A small additional area opened around this pit demonstrated that it was an isolated feature.
The more notable of the ditches recorded included two parallel north-west to south-east aligned features at the northern edge of the site that produced no finds but can be seen to coincide with what has been the line of the Drayton/Taverham parish boundary since at least the mid 19th century. Two ditches in the western part of the site had been visible as geophysical anomalies and are also associated with previously mapped cropmarks thought to represent field boundaries of Iron Age to Roman or later date (part of a group recorded as NHER 52384). Dating evidence from these features was though limited to a single Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age pottery sherd. The majority of the other ditches recorded lay in the eastern half of the site, with most aligned either north-north-east to south-south-west or west-north-west to east-south-east. One produced a single medieval pottery sherd.
Other features included several large probable quarry pits of uncertain date uncovered in the central part of the site. Two smaller features to the south were probably also extractive pits, one of which produced a single late post-medieval/modern pottery sherd.
There was again no evidence for surviving remains associated with the small group of linear cropmarks mapped in the south-east corner of the site (NHER 52385). The trench placed to investigate these did though also fail to identify any trace of an adjacent, much more extensive cropmark (part of the group recorded as NHER 52384), which was associated with a corresponding geophysical anomaly.
See report (S9) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 4 April 2026.