NHER 67125 (Monument record) - Prehistoric, Roman and medieval to post-medieval remains

October 2016. Desk-based Assessment.
Assessment of potential impact of proposed development.
No features of archaeological or historical interest were noted during a brief site visit undertaken as part of this study.
See report (S1) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 21 June 2023.

April 2021. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetometer survey of proposed development site.
This survey identified numerous potentially archaeologically-significant linear and discrete anomalies, with a particularly dense concentration recorded at the northern end of the site. These include a series of parallel, slightly curving west-north-west to east-south-east aligned anomalies thought to potentially represent features associated with some form of former routeway. Its projected line to the east suggests that that it probably joined the Yarmouth Road at or close to the junction with Newport Road. To the west its line is potentially continued by an east-to-west aligned former field boundary depicted on 19th-century maps, which terminated at Ormesby Road, opposite a site marked on the Ordnance Survey First Edition Six-inch map (S2) as 'Old Brick Yard' (NHER 16670). Areas of amorphous anomalies detected in the vicinity of this trackway were also potentially archaeological in origin.
Linear anomalies to the south include a number of north-north-east to south-south-west and west-north-west to east-south-east aligned responses likely to represent at least broadly contemporary elements of an earlier field system. The age of these remains is uncertain, although they are clearly unrelated to the field system present in the late post-medieval period, suggesting a medieval or earlier date is possible.
East-to-west and north-to-south aligned anomalies recorded at the southern end of the site are likely to represent traces of former field boundaries that are shown on the 19th century maps.
Information from draft report. Final version awaited.
P. Watkins (HES), 21 June 2023.

June-July 2021. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of proposed development site.
All of the 22 trenches excavated revealed archaeologically-significant remains, the majority of which were probably ditches (many of which corresponded with anomalies identified by the preceding geophysical survey). Although dating evidence was somewhat limited it appears likely that many of these features were Roman, although there was also evidence for limited earlier and later activity.
Evidence for earlier, prehistoric activity included a small assemblage of worked flints of probable Late Neolithic or later date, the majority of which were probably residual within later contexts. The one potentially prehistoric feature recorded was a north-west to south-east aligned ditch in the western central part of the site that produced more than 40 sherd of probable Early Iron Age pottery. This feature did not continue into any adjacent trenches and no similarly-aligned remains were present in the vicinity. The nature of activity during this period is therefore uncertain, particularly as the only other find of this date was a single undiagnostic sherd of Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age pottery found residual within a later feature.
Roman pottery was recovered from a number of features, albeit in most cases in only small quantities. Significantly, the ditch most convincingly dated to the Roman period was a north-north-east to south-south-west aligned feature that corresponds with one of the geophysical anomalies thought to represent one of the main elements of an earlier field system. Although the majority of the other ditches potentially associated with this field system produced few find the complete lack of post-Roman finds was notable. A Roman date for this field system therefore seems likely. Other features of probable Roman date included a number of pits, all of which lay in the northernmost part of the site, within the densest cluster of geophysical anomalies. The small assemblage of Roman pottery recovered suggests that activity probably peaked during the earlier part of the period, with the limited number of diagnostic sherds all of likely late 1st-century or late 1st- to early 2nd-century date. Other finds from features of probable Roman date included fragments of animal bone and fired clay and oyster shells. A single fragment of Bessalis brick was also recovered from a large pit or hollow of uncertain nature at the northern end of the site (which also produced Roman pottery and several small sherds of medieval pottery).
Evidence for post-Roman activity included two pits of possible medieval date, although both were dated by only single pottery sherds. Although several ditches were likely to be associated with the probable trackway identified by the geophysical survey the age of these remains is uncertain. Although datable finds were limited to a small number of Roman pottery sherds the position of these features in relation to the post-medieval landscape means that a more recent date is still probable.
The only feature of definite post-medieval date was a north-to-south aligned ditch that appears to have corresponded with a former field boundary depicted on the Hemsby tithe map (S3). This contained a fragment of late post-medieval/modern pottery.
The various undated ditches included a north-west to south-east aligned feature that corresponds with one of three linear cropmarks visible on aerial photographs of this field (all part of a group of potentially post-Roman remains recorded as NHER 17673).
See report (S4) for further details.
An archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2021.122).
P. Watkins (HES), 21 June 2023.