NHER 13732 (Cropmark and Earthwork record) - Cropmarks of undated enclosures

20 July 1977.
Cropmark recorded see (S1).

Cropmark of large sub rectangular enclosure and adjacent curvilinear cropmark (S2). The enclosure has opposed entrances on northeast and southwest. Ditch approximately 2.5m wide and enclosing an area of around 1.5 hectares.
D. Edwards (NAU) 18 January 1980.


The central grid reference for this site has been altered from TG 2597 0309 to TG 2591 0314. The cropmarks and soilmarks of drainage ditch and/or channel of probable post medieval date, which may relate to the curvilinear enclosure referred to above, is now discussed within NHER 53223.

December 2009. Norfolk NMP.
The cropmarks of a large sub-rectangular enclosure and associated ditched boundaries of unknown, but possibly prehistoric or early medieval date, are visible on aerial photographs to the south of Caistor Lane, Poringland (S2- S5). The site is centred on TG 2591 0314. Faden’s map of 1797 indicated that the enclosure would have been within the former area of Poringland Heath (S6) and is bisected by the parish boundary between Poringland and Caistor St Edmund, as shown on the 1805 East Poringland Tithe map (S7) and the 1840 Caistor St Edmund Tithe map (S8). The fact that the enclosure is bisected by the parish boundaries could indicate a pre-medieval date for the enclosure. However due to the late enclosure and improvement of Poringland Heath it is possible that reorganisations of the parish boundaries took place during the later eighteenth century as part of the enclosure of the heath and its conversion to arable. It is possible that this enclosure represents a medieval encroachment onto the heath; two other small enclosed areas are depicted on the heath to the east on Faden’s map (S6) and the Poringland mill was located on the heath to the south of this site (NHER 4762). It is therefore possible that this enclosed area relates to some particular activity and/or the enclosure of stock taking place upon the heath. However the possibility remains that the enclosure is pre-medieval in date. There are no finds directly associated with the area of the cropmarks, however Neolithic and Bronze Age finds have been recovered from the wider area (NHER 9884-5, 9889, 30311) and a Roman ring (NHER 34477). A broadly comparable ditched enclosure with an inner bank, that had survived as low earthworks of common ground at Ormesby until the 1960s (NHER 30626), was also initially interpreted as being of probable early medieval date, but has since been dated to the Middle Bronze Age by excavation; see NHER 30626 for details. The cropmarks and soilmarks of an enclosure, trackway and channel of probable post medieval date within the area of this site have been recorded under NHER 53223.
The enclosure is centred on TG 2599 0317 and is sub-rectangular and/or curvilinear in shape; the southern arms of the enclosure are considerably more regular than the northern two, which are more irregular and curvilinear in nature. The enclosure measures approximately 140m by 100m and is enclosed by a relatively broad ditch, up to 6m across in places. Photographs from 1970 clearly show the remnants of an inner bank as a soilmark as the earthwork is plough levelled (S3). The site is already under arable cultivation in the 1940s and no definite sign of remaining earthworks are visible in 1946 (S9), indicating that the soilmark visible in 1970 relates to deeper ploughing. The majority of the bank soilmarks are approximately 6m across, although one area to the north covers almost 12m, although this is likely to have been due to the spreading of the former bank material. The enclosure has several gaps in the ditch, although it is felt that only two of these relate to former entrances, which are opposed and situated on the southwest and northeast sides of the enclosure.
To the south of the enclosure are two broad and somewhat irregular ditches or hollows. These are seen most clearly as soilmarks in 1970 (S3). These broadly follow the same alignment as the southeastern ditch of the enclosure and are assumed to relate to a broadly contemporary trackway and/or hollow way running past the enclosure. It is feasible that route marks a continuation of the medieval road or track and parish boundary recorded within the woods to the east of this site (NHER 53222), see record for details. To the north and west of the enclosure are a series of fragmentary ditches that follow a similar alignment to the enclosure itself and are tentatively interpreted as the remains of contemporary fields and boundary ditches surrounding the enclosure. Although some of these are quite faint and it is possible that some relate to drainage or underlying geological factors.
To the east of the enclosure are a series of narrow linear ditches that are likely to relate to relatively modern drainage features, as some have a clear relationship with the post medieval and modern field layout. A series of narrow parallel linear features have also been omitted from the mapping in the area of TG 2590 0332 (S2) due to a suspicion that they also relate to relatively modern drains, although it is feasible that some or all of them could relate to broadly contemporary ditches, as they follow the same alignment as the enclosure and associated ditches. However on the current evidence it seems most likely that they are non-archaeological.
S. Horlock (NMP), 21 December 2009.

September 2006.
Cropmarks are visible on Google Earth imagery.
See (S10) for further details.
D. Lefeuvre (HES), 21 February 2011.

August-September 2013. Trial Trenching.
This evaluation of land west of the Norwich Road saw trenches excavated across a number of the cropmarks in this group.
The main enclosure was found to be associated with a particularly substantial ditch. Although several slots were excavated finds were limited to four Neolithic or Bronze Age flint flakes, a post-medieval pottery sherd and several fragments of post-medieval ceramic building material. The date of this enclosure ditch remains uncertain as most of these objects were recovered from its uppermost fills and could therefore have been introduced as this area of former heath began to be ploughed for the first time.
A single post-medieval pottery sherd was recovered from a perpendicular, potentially broadly contemporary ditch within the enclosure which corresponds with one of the various more fragmentary cropmarks recorded as part of this group.
The two substantial north-east to south-west aligned soilmarks mapped to the south-east of the enclosure were found to correspond with changes in the natural geology. A narrower north-north-west to south-south-east aligned cropmark to the south was though found to be associated with a surviving ditch. This feature also produced a single sherd of post-medieval pottery.
Information from draft report. See NHER 65034 for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 25 May 2021.