BEDFORDSHIRE

(1) Houghton Regis North 1, site HRN3486 (TL 0270 2560): a ‘strip, map and sample’ investigation totalling c. 11.5 ha was undertaken in advance of housing development at the north-eastern edge of Houghton Regis. Evidence for a field system on a north–south alignment extending over 30 ha was identified. An exception was a north-east–south-west aligned ditch extending over 250 m, which was also found within adjacent excavation areas. An isolated pit contained seven pottery vessels and an iron knife (fig. 10). While it seems likely that this is a grave, no human remains were found.Footnote ⁴²

FIG. 10.

Houghton Regis North 1: pit containing pottery vessels as first exposed and prior to full excavation.

(2) Sandy (TL 179 487): two recent excavations by AOC Archaeology Group and an evaluation by Albion Archaeology have demonstrated that part of the town was walled, as referenced by antiquarians.Footnote ⁴³ Indeed, the town was enclosed within a ditch, a wall and (presumably) a rampart (fig. 11).Footnote ⁴⁴ The nature and dimensions of the wall and ditch are similar to those of other nearby small towns. The c. 3 m-wide wall is comparable to those at Irchester,Footnote ⁴⁵ Cambridge,Footnote ⁴⁶ GodmanchesterFootnote ⁴⁷ and Water Newton.Footnote ⁴⁸ The c. 11.5 m-wide ditch is comparable to those at Godmanchester and Cambridge. The available evidence now suggests that the town was 25–30 ha in extent, with the defences enclosing 11 ha. The size and polygonal shape of the defended area are comparable to Godmanchester, the nearest small town to the north, and Cambridge, the nearest small town to the east.Footnote ⁴⁹

FIG. 11.

Sandy: postulated layout of the defended part of Roman Sandy.

(3) Shefford, Hillfoot Farm (TL 1480 3850): a 2.95-ha excavation in advance of housing development on the south-eastern outskirts of the town uncovered a Late Iron Age/early Roman settlement that was occupied into, and remodelled during, the later Roman period. The Late Iron Age/early Roman settlement was focused on a 0.46-ha trapezoidal enclosure, situated on localised higher ground (fig. 12). It contained sub-enclosures (some of which were probably used for corralling livestock), a rectangular building and probable storage pits. Roundhouses were hinted at by some short curvilinear gullies. A large amount of domestic waste, c. 40 kg of pottery from storage and cooking vessels as well as over 80 kg of animal bone, was recovered. The later Roman period saw the addition of interconnected square or rectilinear enclosures to the north of the trapezoidal enclosure; some appear to be part of a ‘ladder’-type field system. There was no clear evidence of buildings or structures, although an oven, probably used for drying grain, was built within an earlier roundhouse gully to the east of the trapezoidal enclosure. Several large water-pits also appear to have still been open during this period. Recovered artefacts include c. 12 kg of pottery, coins, brooches, an iron socketed axe head and other metal artefacts. Their dating suggests that the settlement was abandoned in the late fourth century.Footnote ⁵⁰

FIG. 12.

Shefford, Hillfoot Farm: aerial view of the Late Iron Age/early Roman trapezoidal enclosure.

CAMBRIDGESHIRE

(1) Balsham (hoard): British Museum (BM) reference: 2019 T675. Deposited c. a.d. 355–64 or later. Contents: one radiate and 559 nummi: a.d. 275‒85, 1 irregular radiate; a.d. 317‒30, 2 (Trier 1; Siscia 1); a.d. 330‒48, 140 (Trier 61; Lyon 18; Arles 9; Aquileia 2; Rome 2; Siscia 4; Thessalonica 2; Constantinople 1; Antioch 1; uncertain mint 7; irregular 33); a.d. 348‒50, 1 (uncertain mint); a.d. 350‒53, 53 (Trier 2; Arles 1; Aquileia 1; irregular 49); a.d. 353‒55, 356 (Trier 10; Lyon 26; Arles 4; uncertain mint 5; irregular 311); a.d. 355‒64, 2 (Lyon 1; irregular 1); uncertain date 5 (irregular). Found during an archaeological excavation at Linton Road, Balsham, Cambridgeshire. The coins were found on the site of a Roman settlement, deposited together as a hoard in the fill of a sub-circular pit measuring approximately 0.30 by 0.24 m. Most of the coins within the pit were found arranged in loose stacks, indicating deposition in a series of textile rouleaux that have since decayed in the soil. Most of the coins in the hoard are ‘fallen horseman’ nummi of the House of Constantine, issued in the late a.d. 340s and 350s; these include a high proportion of unofficial ‘irregular’ nummi struck on flans ranging in size from 10.1 to 20.8 mm. The hoard was excavated in spits but found to have a high degree of homogeneity.Footnote ⁵¹

(2) Foxton, land to the north-west of Foxton (TL 4062 4856): evaluation confirmed the presence of an early Roman double-ditched trackway and an adjoining rectangular enclosure, previously plotted from cropmarks. The line of the trackway corresponded with a low broad earthwork bank which has presumably been heavily denuded by ploughing. It is likely that this trackway is associated with a major and long-lived complex of Roman settlement located c. 500 m to the west of the site, along Foxton Brook.Footnote ⁵²

(3) Waterbeach, Waterbeach Barracks (TL 48817 67412): excavation revealed the edge of a Roman settlement, represented by an enclosure ditch extending towards an area of extant woodland. Beyond the enclosure was an industrial area containing pottery kilns of the Horningsea-type ware, a farming area represented by enclosures/paddocks and traces of cultivation ditches. Two clusters of inhumation graves and two cremation pits were found; the western group of graves was notable for the skulls being at the feet of the body.Footnote ⁵³

DERBYSHIRE

(1) Hucknall: hoard. Deposited c. a.d. 272‒74 or later. Contents: 114 radiates: Gallienus (sole reign) 9; Claudius II 9; Postumus 3; Victorinus 13; Tetricus I 5; Tetricus II 5; uncertain Gallic emperor 24; uncertain radiates 27; irregular 15; illegible 4. Two brooches of second-century a.d. date, DENO-B43FED and DENO-B433AA, are said to have been found nearby. This group of poorly preserved coins also contained some contemporary copies of radiates of large module that were probably issued during or slightly later than the a.d. 270s but could be as late as the mid- a.d. 280s. It is likely that there are more of these among the unidentified coins and that some of those attributed to emperors are also irregular.Footnote ⁵⁴

HERTFORDSHIRE

(1) Bishop's Stortford, Whittington Way (TL 4833 1910): excavation revealed two small enclosed burial grounds established around the time of the Roman Conquest. A single inhumation burial and several cremations, interred with and without pottery grave goods, were found. The cemeteries were supplanted by fields of early Roman cultivation rows, usually associated with viticultural or horticultural practices. These fields were separated by trackways from an extensive area given over to post-built structures. The fields and buildings were centred upon a set of ditched enclosures, which were soon remodelled and incorporated a larger part of the site. This latter complex produced some evidence for cereal processing and corn-drying activity and much of the Romano-British pottery and faunal assemblages recovered from the site. The ceramic evidence determined this site was abandoned around the end of the first century a.d.Footnote ⁵⁵

(2) Bishop's Stortford, Bishop Stortford High School (TL 48712 19658): evaluation of a 3.6-ha parcel of land was undertaken prior to the proposed development of the site. The evaluation comprised 23 trial trenches and the monitoring of one geotechnical pit. Twenty-one of the 23 trenches revealed archaeological features. The most significant and densely concentrated archaeology was found in the western and northern areas of site, and comprised Romano-British pits, ditches and spreads of domestic material. These features and their fills are probably the result of nearby domestic activities and local agricultural practices. There was little evidence to suggest habitation within the site itself, but an inhumation burial made in the top of a gully and the nature of the associated finds assemblage does suggest that settlement features may be preserved within these playing fields. It seems probable that these lie in the north-western parts of the area or just outside the site boundary. The Romano-British activity spans the second to fourth century a.d.

The trenches in the central, southern and eastern parts of site revealed a series of east–west and north–south aligned ditches, probably field systems. Elements of these field systems may date to the late prehistoric period and reflect an earlier origin to the field system in the southern and eastern parts of the development area. Few prehistoric artefacts were recovered, and this seems to suggest a background level of activity or that these finds had been reworked into later features.Footnote ⁵⁶

LEICESTERSHIRE

(1) Bottesford (SK 803 394): a 28-trench evaluation to the north of Bottesford was undertaken in September 2018. A geophysical survey had identified a number of enclosures and linear features across the site and these features were targeted during the evaluation. Two main foci of Late Iron Age and late Roman activity in the western part of the site (Areas 1 and 2) and two areas of possible Roman enclosures and field systems in the south-central part of the site (Areas 2 and 3) were found. A significant quantity of middle to late Roman pottery and animal bone was recovered from the site, consistent with a moderate-status settlement, but with some evidence of continental-style dining practices. Notable finds include four Roman coins, a bone needle holder, worked bone, a hobnail, Roman tile and a quernstone. The group of four coins comprises an unidentified denarius, two common fourth-century types and an unusually thick (extremely worn) sestertius of Marcus Aurelius (a.d. 161–80). The recovery of charred cereal grains indicates a typical crop regime for the area, with weed seeds consistent with the spread of cultivation onto heavier clay soils. Cattle, sheep/goat and pig bones were recovered, while the presence of wildfowl specimens, including plover and snipe, highlight the exploitation of local wetlands. The archaeology was deeply buried in places and well preserved from having been sealed by up to 1 m of alluvium. Evidence of several possible rural ‘dark-earth’ deposits was also identified at the western edge of the site.Footnote ⁵⁷

(2) Melton Mowbray, Leicester Road (SK 741 176): an archaeological excavation in 2018 in advance of housing development, 1.9 km south-west of the centre of Melton Mowbray, revealed the remains of a Romano-British double-ditched rectilinear enclosure. Pottery from the enclosure dates the period of occupation at the site to the second and third centuries a.d. Charred plant remains indicated that cereal processing was a primary concern of the inhabitants, while the more limited animal bone assemblage supported the interpretation of a small, if slightly enigmatic farmstead. There was evidence that local arable cultivation expanded onto the less fertile heavy clays nearby and there were also signs that hay meadows may have been managed for livestock husbandry. Overall, the site is significant in a regional context. Its plan is very unusual, if not unknown, and, importantly, it contributes to understanding settlement types around Melton Mowbray and potentially within the wider hinterland surrounding the civitas capital at Leicester (Ratae Corieltavorum) during the middle Roman period.Footnote ⁵⁸

(3) Sapcote, Hinckley Road (SP 4830 9343): an archaeological excavation in January to June 2019 to the south of Hinckley Road in Sapcote investigated three separate excavation areas, covering a total of 1.7 ha. Most of the features revealed related to Romano-British activity, with a set of conjoined rectangular enclosures representing a long-lived, relatively low-status Romano-British farmstead. Although no structural remains were found, a small, ditched enclosure may have represented a building compound. The enclosures were associated with a number of discrete pits, including a large well. The finds assemblages from the enclosure ditches and associated features includes over 300 sherds of Roman pottery dating from the mid-first to the fourth century a.d. The fills of several pits within and around the enclosures produced evidence for crop processing and smithing, as well as assemblages of fired clay and reused ceramic building material, probably representing the remains of ovens. The most notable individual find was a large fragment of quernstone, bearing unusual, grooved decoration, recovered from one of the enclosure ditches. Roman activity at the site seems to have ended in the fourth century.Footnote ⁵⁹

NORTHAMPTONSHIRE

(1) Deene, Priors Hall, Corby (SP 92463 91807): excavation uncovered rare evidence of a late Romano-British villa estate that underwent a transformation of function. In its earliest phase it comprised a large stone-built temple-mausoleum and a trackway, which are believed to be linked to an earlier phase of the adjacent villa, probably in the second century a.d. At some point in the third century, the site was adapted into an industrialised landscape of manufacture, with pottery, ceramic tiles and lime being produced on the site. The earlier temple-mausoleum structure underwent a dramatic transformation into a large tile and pottery manufactory, with two tile kilns and three pottery kilns being established within its central surviving structure and immediate courtyard. The preliminary analysis on the pottery has established a date range of a.d. 200–400. This later activity was accompanied by the exploitation of natural resources, evidenced on site by stone and clay quarries. The industrial activity is a rare example of infrastructure work associated with a later phase of villa expansion or rebuild. A series of small, localised field systems and post-structures is associated with this burgeoning manufacturing centre. A final phase of use in the late fourth century a.d. involved the systematic close-down and backfilling of the quarries and pottery kilns, although the tile kilns may have continued in use for slightly longer.Footnote ⁶⁰

NOTTINGHAMSHIRE

(1) Newark, land at A17/A1 junction (SK 8243 5557): evaluation uncovered extensive and complex archaeological remains, predominantly enclosure and boundary ditches. Pottery dated from the Late Iron Age to the later Romano-British period was recovered from a range of features across all three trenches. The period of peak occupation of the site is suggested by the later Roman ceramics, and this may tentatively be linked to the Roman urban development of Crocolana, located c. 3 km to the north-east of the site.Footnote ⁶¹

OXFORDSHIRE

(1) Nuneham Courtenay, Lower Farm (SP 53950059): an updated assessment of a series of magnetometer surveys of a Roman pottery production site at Lower Farm, undertaken from 1992 to 1996 by the then Ancient Monuments Laboratory of English Heritage, was produced in 2020. The site was initially discovered during the laying of a water main, prompting the wider geophysical investigation of the surrounding farmland. Over several stages of fieldwork, a total area of 12.7 ha was surveyed, resulting in a detailed plan of Roman enclosures, pottery kilns and trackways that were revealed with great clarity (fig. 13). The suitability of the underlying Jurassic geology to afford highly informative results through magnetometer survey was also amply demonstrated.Footnote ⁶² These results, combined with fieldwalking evidence obtained by Oxford Archaeology,Footnote ⁶³ clearly indicate that the industrial complex extends from Lower Farm, where the pottery production activity was first recognised, as far as the A4074 road some 500 m to the east. The regularity of the pattern of Romano-British enclosures suggests a well-planned and structured layout that developed over time. The phased development of the ladder system may perhaps relate to gradual expansion of the settlement and its industrial base as demand for pottery production increased, in keeping with evidence from limited excavation along the pipeline easement near Lower Farm in 1992 that also indicated two distinct phases of Roman activity in the western part of the site that continued into the fourth century.Footnote ⁶⁴ Together, the excavations and geophysical survey have produced one of the most detailed plans of an Oxfordshire Roman kiln site to date. The later production was on a very large scale, as indicated by at least 12 separate production areas of kilns and associated activity revealed by the surveys. Following the review of the earlier magnetometer survey results, the pottery production site was added to the National Heritage List for England in December 2020.Footnote ⁶⁵ The original geophysical surveys were conducted in the 1990s by the then English Heritage Geophysics Team (now Historic England).Footnote ⁶⁶

FIG. 13.

Nuneham Courtenay, Lower Farm: pottery manufacturing centre.

(2) Wantage, Crab Hill (SU 40510 89010): excavations between September 2018 and May 2019 to the north-east of Wantage uncovered a long-lived Iron Age and Roman settlement. The extensive Iron Age settlement was significantly reorganised early in the Roman period when two rectilinear enclosures and minor subsidiary enclosures were established, with a ditch cutting and possibly purposefully slighting the Late Iron Age circular enclosure. The Roman enclosures were recut multiple times throughout the following centuries and the organisation of the site remained remarkably consistent until it was abandoned at the end of the fourth century a.d. A middle Roman corn-drier (fig. 14) and two late Roman corn-driers were discovered, along with two late Roman wells. A fragment of a quern made from raw material quarried in the Channel Islands or northern France was also discovered. Settlement continued into the early Saxon period.Footnote ⁶⁷

FIG. 14.

Wantage: middle Roman corn-drier 1240.

(3) Woodstock, Blenheim Net Zero Project (SP 45588 18056): an archaeological evaluation of the site of a proposed solar farm was undertaken in October 2020. A preceding geophysical survey of the 12-ha site undertaken in May 2020 detected a small number of anomalies of possible archaeological origin, suggestive of trackways or field boundaries, a D-shaped enclosure and a ring ditch. In total, 66 trenches targeting these possible features were investigated across an 8.9-ha area of the site. Of these, seven were found to contain archaeological remains comprising a small number of ditches and pits concentrated in the south of the site. A series of parallel ditches appears to have delineated a trackway that crossed the south of the site on an ENE–WSW alignment. The offset nature of one of the ditches is suggestive of a different phase of the same trackway or perhaps an associated field boundary. Small quantities of early and middle Roman pottery and animal bones provide evidence of deposition that may have been related to nearby settlement activity. Earthwork and cropmark evidence suggests that the trackway was connected to a nearby Roman farmstead (Scheduled Monument 1006357). The trackway perhaps formed part of a local network associated with Akeman Street located to the north, connecting nearby settlement and villa sites to the major Roman road.Footnote ⁶⁸