NHER 68891 (Monument record) - Remnants of at least one saltern mound and post-medieval sea bank

May 2021. Desk-based Assessment.
Assessment of potential impact of proposed development.
See report (S1) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 27 January 2025.

May and August 2021. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetometer survey of part of large proposed development area (F2).
It should be noted that the results of this survey were potentially impaired by the presence of 'green waste' across the entire site, which created a dense spread of magnetic disturbance that may have masked archaeologically-significant anomalies.
A cluster of high magnitude anomalies identified in the south-east corner of the site may though indicate the presence of remains associated with medieval or earlier salt production, particularly as it lies adjacent to a kink in the former line of the old sea bank (NHER 5528). It is though noted that these anomalies could relate to the installation and/or repair of an adjacent sluice shown on the Ordnance Survey First Edition Six-inch map (S2).
These was no evidence for surviving remains associated with the various features visible as low earthworks on aerial images of the site, including several probable saltern mounds (NHERs 27128, 27904 and 27905), the old sea bank (NHER 5528) and post-medieval sea defences (NHERs 27078 and 27134). It should though be noted that the majority of these features correspond with surviving earthworks visible in visualised LiDAR data for the site (reproduced in the report on the subsequent trial trenching).
Sinuous linear trends present across much of the site potentially represent former drainage channels and/or natural variations in the natural alluvial deposits. As at the sites to the west and south these responses are bounded to the west by a faint north-to-south aligned trend. This may represent a geological boundary such as a former shoreline but does not correspond with the line of any of the known former sea defences.
Information from draft report. Final version awaited.
P. Watkins (HES), 27 January 2025.

September-October 2023. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of part of large proposed development site (Trenches 1-10).
Six of the trenches excavated at this location were positioned to investigate a large probable medieval or post-medieval saltern mound recorded at the northern end of the site (NHER 27905). The two trenches closest to the centre of this feature both encountered a crumbly orangey brown silt beneath the topsoil that potentially represented the remnants of the mound. This was though archaeologically sterile and the adjacent trenches within the recorded footprint of the mound encountered only sequences of what were likely to be natural alluvial clays and silts.
Two trenches to the south were positioned to coincide with the line of a probable post-medieval sea bank (NHER 27134). Both encountered light yellowish-brown silt deposits likely to represent the remnants of the bank. An exploratory sondage revealed an underlying bluish grey silt, the uppermost surface of which exhibited evidence for considerable bioturbation – suggesting this had been the surface of the saltmarsh prior to the deposition of the bank material.
Two trenches excavated in the southernmost part of the site - to the west of the old sea bank (NHER 5528) - revealed only sequences of natural alluvial deposits.
It should be noted that this phase of work saw no investigation of either the geophysical anomalies identified in the south-east corner of the site or the various probable saltern mounds recorded to the east of the old sea bank (NHERs 27904 and 27128).
No finds were recovered.
Information from draft report. Final version awaited.
P. Watkins (HES), 27 January 2025.