NHER 62740 (Monument record) - Post-medieval and undated ditches and natural features

March 2018. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of proposed development site.
The 18 trenches excavated revealed a number of potentially archaeologically significant features, although unfortunately the majority produced little or no dating evidence.
Although a number of linear cropmarks have been mapped in this field (NHERs 43467 and 43457) the majority were found to have no associated surviving sub-surface remains. The one exception was an east-north-east to west-south-west aligned ditch that corresponded with one of several cropmarks assigned a broad medieval to post-medieval date range (NHER 43457). This ditch produced several sherds of post-medieval pottery. There was a suggestion that some at least some of the cropmarks recorded as NHER 43467 were the result of variations in the underlying natural geology.
A number of other ditches were also identified, although unfortunately little dating evidence was recovered. The majority of these features were aligned either north-north-west to south-south-east or east-north-east to west-south-west, matching the orientations of both the surrounding late post-medieval field boundaries and the medieval to post-medieval cropmarks. The only find recovered was a single fragment of post-medieval tile. It is however noted that in several cases the cuts of these ditches were not visible in the subsoil layer, suggesting that they could well be of medieval or earlier date. Samples taken from three of the undated ditches produced little in the way of plant macrofossils or other debris.
Apart from a single possible post-hole all of the discrete features investigated were thought to be of natural origin. A number of these features were interpreted as probable tree throw hollows, two of which produced post-medieval finds. Another had a heat-reddened base, possibly the result of a tree stump being burnt in situ.
Unstratified finds were limited to a single prehistoric flint flake and a small assemblage of post-medieval to modern and undated metal objects.
See report (S1) for further details.
An archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2019.231).
P. Watkins (HES), 10 May 2018. Amended 9 December 2022.