NHER 65678 (Monument record) - Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age and later remains

January 2022. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of proposed development site.
The 19 trenches excavated revealed a range of linear and discrete features. These included a group of pits, ditches and possible post-holes in the north-west corner of the field, several of which produced handmade pottery of probable Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age. Although much of pottery can only be broadly identified as probably Post-Deverel-Rimbury, the more diagnostic sherds are all suggestive of an Early Iron Age date. Several of the features that produced the largest assemblages of pottery were also found to contain fragments of fired clay. Although this material is mostly highly abraded and fragmentary a number of pieces in one pit have a curved surface, suggesting they might have formed the superstructure of an oven. A substantial flat-based pit or ditch was also found to contain a small deposit of cremated human bone. Although this bone is also very fragmentary the small number of identifiable pieces suggest it represents the remains of an immature individual, perhaps an infant. A sample of the surrounding material was found to contained abundant charcoal, along with vitrified organic material and several charred spelt grains. An Einkorn wheat grain was recovered from another sample taken from this feature and charred spelt grains were also noted in samples from two other features on the site.
There was evidence for at least one later phase of Iron Age activity on the site with one of the large pits containing Early Iron Age pottery also producing several wheel-made Late Iron Age pottery sherds, including one of Gallo-Belgic/Aylsford-Swarling type (suggesting they date to the very end of the Iron Age or the immediate post-conquest period). A ditch at the southern end of the site also contained several sherds of Early or Middle Iron Age date that were clearly distinct from the Post-Deverel-Rimbury assemblage.
Later features included a ditch or pit at the southern end of the site that contained several sherds from a single early medieval vessel. Although interpreted as a north-to-south aligned ditch this feature had quite a broad, flattish base and did not continue into the adjacent trench. A post-medieval brick found in one of several north-to-south aligned ditches was the only stratified find of this date. A series of parallel, narrow, north-to-south aligned linear features were probably associated with relatively recent horticultural activity as the area was apparently part of a vegetable garden during the 20th century. One was found to contain a coin of 19th- or 20th-century date.
Given the scarcity of more recent finds it is possible that many of the various undated features were also associated with the Iron Age phases of activity. The more notable undated features included a very small possible ring-ditch in the north-eastern part of the site and a large pit in the south-west corner that was surrounded by two potentially contemporary narrow ditches or gullies.
Although a number of linear cropmarks have been recorded at this location (NHER 27404) there was little correlation between these and the excavated remains. The one possible exception was the curving, fragmentary cropmark running between TG 5025 1461 and TG 5036 1453, the western end of which lay close to two similarly-aligned ditches. This may though have between coincidental as the other two trenches that coincided with this cropmark revealed no potentially corresponding remains.
The small number of unstratified finds recovered included a medieval/post-medieval cast copper alloy vessel leg and undated iron nails and lead waste.
See report (S1) for further details.
An archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2022.58).
P. Watkins (HES), 13 June 2022. Amended, 28 July 2023.

October-November 2024. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of proposed northern extension to existing development site.
The three additional trenches excavated at the northern end of the site revealed a number of additional pits and linear features. These were generally poorly-dated but are thought to have been mostly associated with medieval or later phases of activity.
Prehistoric finds were limited to a small number of flint flakes of likely Neolithic/Bronze Age date. Most were probably residual, the one possible exception being recovered from an otherwise undated sub-rectangular pit or natural feature.
The central trench revealed a cluster of intercutting pits, one of which contained pottery sherds of probable late medieval/early post-medieval date. This feature was cut by a fairly substantial north-to-south aligned ditch. An equally substantial ditch on a similar alignment was encountered in a trench to the west, which produced a single medieval pottery sherd.
A number of much more ephemeral north-to-south and east-to-west aligned linear features were also recorded, one of which contained a fragment of a 19th- or 20th-century plant pot. These are all thought to have been associated with relatively recent horticultural activity.
The only other feature of note was a pit containing a stoneware terrine and other rubbish of early 20th-century date.
No unstratified finds were recovered.
Information from draft report. Final version awaited.
P. Watkins (HES), 11 July 2025.