NHER 69187 (Monument record) - Potentially medieval and later pits

November 2024. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of proposed development site.
Two intercutting large pits recorded in south-east corner of the site are thought to have been medieval waste pits, although dating evidence was limited to a single medieval pottery sherd recovered from the earlier feature. Samples from these features produced only small assemblages of charred macrofossils, although the presence of some grain, along with fragments of bone and mollusc shell suggests this material was likely derived from hearth and/or midden waste. Small quantities of animal bone and oyster shell were also hand collected from the later pit.
Two additional pits were recorded elsewhere on the site, one of which was left unexcavated as it could be seen to contain bottles of late 19th- to early 20th-century date. The second pit was of a more uncertain date as it produced only a single fragment of abraded post-medieval brick.
A small number of unstratified finds were recovered from the subsoil layer present, including late post-medieval pottery sherds and additional fragments of animal bone.
Information from draft report. Final version awaited.
P. Watkins (HES), 9 June 2025.