NHER 64343 (Monument record) - Undated ditch, post-medieval deposits and medieval to post-medieval finds

April 2017. Topographic Survey and Test Pitting.
Evaluation of site of proposed new driveway, the route of which will follow that of a former driveway depicted on 19th-century maps of the site. This work took place following a targeted topographic survey of earthworks present close to the intended location of the test pits.
A test pit excavated on the line of a previously identified linear earthwork identified what may have been the fill of an associated ditch, overlain by material interpreted as deliberate infill and demolition waste. It is suggested that this material represented post-medieval landscaping that took place following the demolition of a nearby post-Dissolution barn. One of the test pits encountered make-up deposits that had probably been lain down to create a raised platform for this barn. These layers produced a number of medieval finds, including brick and roof tile fragments and a complete lead stylus. A test pit excavated on sloping ground to the south of this possible artificial platform revealed a sequence of water-logged silts that produced butchered pig bones, additional medieval brick and tile fragments and a post-medieval floor tile.
A test pit excavated on the projected line of a linear earthwork close to the farmhouse revealed no evidence for a corresponding feature. The topsoil at this location was comparatively thin and overlay material interpreted as a post-medieval landscaping deposit, and a make-up layer. A range of medieval to post-medieval finds were recovered from this test pit, including an abraded Flemish floor tile, medieval brick fragments and a pottery sherd of 15th- to 16th-century date.
There was only limited evidence for the late post-medieval driveway, which appears to have comprised little more than a lightly gravelled surface. This is consistent with the cartographic evidence which suggests that by the late 19th century this route was only a footpath, having been superseded by the current access road.
See report (S1) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 27 August 2020.