NHER 62727 (Monument record) - Medieval to post-medieval remains including enclosures, drying kilns and probable windmill mound

December 2007-January 2008. Desk-based Assessment.
Assessment of proposed development site.
See report (S1) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 2 May 2018.

January 2013. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetometer survey of proposed development area.
This survey identified a number of potentially archaeologically-significant anomalies, the most notable of which was a circular banked feature at the western edge of the field. This anomaly was 17m in diameter and surrounded by a weak positive halo that may indicate the presence of an outer ditch.
A dense cluster of north-to-south and east-to-west aligned anomalies identified at the northern edge of the field (at TG 5028 0303) are likely to represent the remains of a series of rectilinear enclosures. A number of more isolated, but similarly-aligned linear positive anomalies were also identified in this part of the field. The fragmentary nature of these anomalies suggests that any associated remains may well have been heavily truncated by ploughing.
Potentially archaeologically-significant positive linear anomalies were also identified in the south-east corner of the field, although these appear to bear little relation to the north-east to south-west and north-west to south-east aligned cropmark features that have been previously mapped in this area (NHER 43467). One may however correspond with a pair of adjacent, parallel north-east to south-west aligned cropmarks that are easternmost of those recorded as NHER 43592.
Two of the more extensive linear anomalies identified in the field are likely to represent post-medieval ditches, corresponding with boundaries shown on the late 19th-century 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map.
A faint east-to-west aligned linear anomaly at the southern end of the field possibly corresponds with the cropmarks of an extensive, potentially Roman boundary (NHER 43593), although it should be noted that this anomaly wasn't one of those identified as potentially archaeologically significant.
A number of discrete positive anomalies in the eastern half of the field may indicate the presence of sub-surface features such as pits.
Various discrete magnetic 'spikes' probably indicate the presence of ferrous debris.
See report (S2) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 2 May 2018.

August 2013. Desk-based Assessment.
Assessment of large proposed development area.
See report (S3) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 2 January 2019.

May 2014. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of proposed development area (Phase 1, Trenches 2-20).
The majority of the twenty-one trenches excavated in this field revealed archaeologically significant remains including both ditches and discrete features.
Several of the north-to-south aligned ditches exposed in the north-central part of the site clearly corresponded with the group of linear geophysical anomalies believed to represent the remains of several contemporary enclosures. Unfortunately finds were limited to single sherds of Late Saxon/medieval and medieval pottery, although the lack of later material and the date of surrounding features suggest these finds may well reflect the date of the enclosures.
Two pits excavated within these probable enclosures produced Late Saxon/medieval pottery sherds and sherds of a similar date were also recovered from two ditches in the north-west corner of the field (both of which also corresponded with geophysical anomalies) and an east-to-west aligned ditch in the easternmost part of the field. Another potential medieval feature was a reasonably well-preserved kiln that was exposed in a trench to the east of the enclosures. This consisted of clay-lined circular chamber connected by a narrow flue to a broad shallow feature that had probably functioned as a stoke pit. A single medieval pottery sherd was the only find recovered from this structure. A sample taken from the charcoal-rich fill of the main chamber produced a small amount of charred cereal grain but no other evidence for the function of the structure. Samples taken from other potentially medieval features also produced only small plant macrofossil assemblages.
Although a trench was positioned to target the ring-ditch identified by the geophysical survey it would appear that no corresponding features were identified. It should however be noted that the excavated features elsewhere on the site appear to be consistently out of position in relation to clearly corresponding geophysical anomalies, suggesting some form of surveying error may have occurred. It is therefore possible that a north-east to south-west aligned ditch at the western end of the trench was part of the ring-ditch, although this also produced a small amount of medieval pottery.
Overall the pottery assemblage recovered suggests that many of the excavated features were probably associated with an 11th- to 12th-century phase of activity. Although some of the sherds could have been later in date the lack of glazed wares supports the suggestion that activity did not continue far into the 13th century.
Evidence for earlier activity was largely limited to a small assemblage of 34 worked flints, more than half of which were recovered from unstratified contexts. A notable number of worked flints are of probable Early Neolithic date (including a blade core, blades and several flake implements), although a small number of later, Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age pieces are also present. Three small fragments of ceramic building material were potentially Roman, but this was far from certain.
Features potentially associated with more recent activity included a pit and an east-to-west aligned ditch in the westernmost part of the field that both produced small amounts of post-medieval pottery. A pit in the central part of the site also produced fragments of post-medieval brick and a fragment of coal was recovered from a nearby north-to-south aligned ditch. Also of likely post-medieval date was a north-to-south aligned ditch in the eastern half of the site that corresponds with both a geophysical anomaly and a field boundary marked on the late 19th-century 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map.
Undated features included several additional ditches (including a single north-east to south-west aligned feature), dispersed possible pits and a number of what were probably natural features.
See report (S4) for further details.
An archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2016.235).
P. Watkins (HES), 2 May 2018. Amended 12 July 2023.

July 2014. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of route of proposed A12-A143 Link Road (Trenches 2-10 and 11A).
A large irregular pit was the only archaeologically significant feature recorded in the ten trenches excavated in this field. This pit was thought to date to the post-medieval period and produced ceramic building material, slag and a small assemblage of presumably residual prehistoric worked flints. The worked flints include a Mesolithic blade core and a number of flakes of probable Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age date.
Unstratified finds included a flint blade of possible Early Neolithic date.
See report (S5) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 8 April 2018.

August 2014. Strip Map and Sample Excavation.
Excavation of two areas in western half of site, targeting the ring-ditch and the concentration of potentially medieval features identified by the preceding geophysical survey and Phase 1 trial trenching.
As during the earlier work there was only limited evidence for activity on the site prior to the Late Saxon period. Although over 150 worked flints of predominantly earlier prehistoric date were recovered the bulk were clearly residual in later contexts. A small number of probable Mesolithic pieces are present but the assemblage primarily comprises flints of Early Neolithic date, including blade cores, blades, scrapers, an axehead roughout and a finely-made sickle blade. The sickle was found isolated and unbroken within an otherwise undated pit, leading to the suggestion that it may have been deliberately placed within this feature. The small number of later prehistoric finds included worked flints of Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age date and several Bronze Age or Iron Age pottery sherds. The single feature of possible prehistoric date was a pit that produced six sherds of potentially Late Bronze Age pottery and no later finds.
As expected the excavation exposed a large number of ditches and gullies of probable Late Saxon to medieval date, the bulk of which were present in the area to the south of Clay Lane. These were mostly aligned east-to-west or north-to-south and a number had clearly formed enclosures of varying size and shape. A number of the ditches had been recut on at least one occasion and several of the enclosures were superimposed, suggesting a reasonably prolonged period of activity. This is consistent with the pottery assemblage, which suggests that the bulk of the excavated ditches were associated with a Saxon-Norman to High Medieval phase of activity. A range of discrete features are likely to have been broadly contemporary with these enclosures, including probable pits, post-holes and a kiln similar to that which had been exposed during the preceding evaluation. The pits and possible post-holes lay predominantly along the northernmost edge of the site and many could only be tentatively associated with this phase of activity, having produced little or no dating evidence. The kiln lay within one of the denser clusters of ditches and comprising a clay-lined circular chamber linked by a narrow flue to a small sub-oval stoke pit. Samples taken from its charcoal-rich fills suggest that it had most likely been used to dry locally-grown cereals for storage or export. A possible structure comprising a sub-rectangular hollow and a number of post-holes lay next to the kiln and may have formed some kind of associated shelter or enclosed space. Interestingly the deposits associated with this possible structure were found to contain an unusually large number of bird bones, the majority of which appear to be the remains of geese. The cereal remains present within the kiln and the other Saxo-Norman to High Medieval features sampled include hulled barley, oat, rye and wheat. The relative scarcity of wheat is at odds with the expected pattern for the period but perhaps a result of the sandy soils that predominate in the area.
The pottery recovered suggests that a small number of the excavated features were associated with a later, High Medieval to post-medieval (15th to 17th century AD) phase of activity, including several ditches, three pits, a second kiln and the large ring-ditch now believed to represent the remains of a windmill. All but one of the ditches associated with this later phase of activity lay at the northern edge of the site, suggesting that by this time the site was much more open. The clay-lined kiln lay to the east of its predecessor and was comparatively poorly preserved, with little of its superstructure surviving. The presence of cereal grains in the charcoal-rich fill of its stoke pit does however suggest it had served a similar function. The assemblages of cereal remains recovered from this and other features of probable later medieval to post-medieval date were broadly comparable to those from the earlier remains, although it was noted that the proportion of wheat was now higher. It is therefore possible that the presence of a mill on the site had led to the importing of cereals from a wider area.
The ring-ditch was continuous, around 22m in diameter and had been intermittently recut, with one of these later ditch segments appearing to merge with a presumably contemporary field boundary ditch running parallel to Browston Lane. The identification of this as a probable windmill mound reflects the number of medieval to post-medieval finds recovered from the ditch as well as the fact it appeared to be cut through buried soils horizons that contained Late Saxon and medieval pottery. It is suggested that a sub-rectangular pit identified at the centre of the ring-ditch may have formed part of the footings for a post mill, although the cross-shaped footings usually associated with such structures were clearly not present (or had not survived). A thin layer of redeposited chalky clay present mainly within the ring-ditch was potentially the ploughed-out remains of the artificial mound on which the windmill would have been built.
The small number of later, post-medieval features identified included two gullies or truncated ditches close to the windmill and three dispersed pits.
As during preceding and subsequent phases of trial trenching in this field a significant proportion of the excavated features were largely unremarkable possible pits and post-holes that produced were little in the way of finds.
See archive report (S6) and assessment report (S7) for further details. Final publication awaited.
The associated archive has been deposited with the Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2016.235).
P. Watkins (HES), 9 May 2018. Amended 28 September 2020.

January-July 2015. Watching Brief.
Monitoring of groundworks associated with construction of A12-A143 Link Road.
No archaeologically significant features or deposits were recorded during the monitoring of various works in this area.
See report (S8) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 14 May 2018.

An archive that probably comprises material from both phases of work associated with the A12-A143 Link Road (July 2014 and January-July 2015) has now been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2016.248).
P. Watkins (HES), 28 June 2021.

August-October 2016. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of two proposed development areas in eastern half of site (Phase 2). A total of 31 trenches were excavated, 13 to the north of the new link road (Trenches 1-5, 8-9 and 11-16) and 18 to the south of the link road (Trenches 17-34).
The trenches excavated to the north of the link road revealed only a diffuse scatter of mostly discrete features, the majority of which produced no dating evidence. The only finds recovered were two sherds of possible Iron Age pottery that were found in a partially-exposed large pit or hollow. The majority of the other features in this area were recorded as possible pits, all of which appear to have had fairly unremarkable, sterile fills. Other remains included a north-to-south aligned ditch at the eastern edge of the site and several features identified as possible ditch termini. Although three of the trenches coincided with linear cropmarks associated with a possible field system of Iron Age or Roman date (NHER 43467), no corresponding sub-surface remains were identified.
This work also failed to identify any evidence associated with the World War Two High Frequency Direction Finding Station (HF/DF) known from aerial photographs to have lain to the east of Clay Lane (NHER 42232). It should however be noted that it was not possible to excavate the trench that would have examined the area of cleared ground that had probably been the site of a related building.
The trenches excavated to the south of the link road revealed a number of ditches, the majority of which were associated with the linear geophysical anomalies identified in this part of the site. An east-north-east to west-south-west aligned ditch at the eastern edge of the site also probably corresponded with one of the linear cropmark recorded in this area (NHER 17226). Unfortunately the majority of these ditches also produced little in the way of dating evidence. One notable exception was a north-to-south aligned feature that produced a small number of Late Saxon and early medieval pottery sherds, suggesting that at least some of these ditches were potentially contemporary with the medieval enclosures and associated remains excavated to the east. Another ditch produced two sherds of probable Late Bronze Age or Iron Age pottery.
Features of likely post-medieval date included a north-east to south-west aligned ditch that had also been detected by the geophysical survey and several large probable quarry pits exposed in one of the southernmost trenches. Although a number of other possible pits and gullies were also identified these were all undated and largely unremarkable.
See report (S9) for further details.
The associated archive has been deposited with the Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2016.235).
P. Watkins (HES), 10 May 2018.