NHER 17334 (Cropmark and Earthwork record) - Cropmark of a hengiform ring ditch

6 July 1977, 4 July 1989. NAU air photography.
Cropmarks. One (causewayed) ring ditch.
D. Edwards (NAU), 3 December 1980.

April 2006. Norfolk NMP.
A cropmark of a hengiform ring ditch of probable late Neolithic to Bronze Age date is visible on aerial photographs (S1-S6). The central grid reference for this cropmark has been amended from TM 3165 8942 to TM 3166 8942. The ring ditch has a sub-circular plan with a 1m wide ditch and an external diameter of 24m. There is a 10m wide gap in the ditch on its northwest side which is defined by enlarged ditch terminals. It is likely that this ring ditch is of late Neolithic to Bronze Age date. It is possible that it could relate to a round barrow. It is located on a gentle east facing slope at approximately 12m OD. Further ring ditches of probable Bronze Age date are present 200m and 270m to the southwest (NHER 43535, 43606).
J. Albone (NMP), 12 April 2006.

January 2018. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetometer survey of site of proposed quarry extension to west of Bath Hills Road (Area 2).
This survey revealed no clear evidence for surviving sub-surface remains associated with this ring-ditch.
Details from (S7). Report awaited. See NHER 65421 for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 26 February 2022.

January 2019. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of site of proposed quarry extension to west of Bath Hills Road (Area 2).
Two trenches were positioned to investigate this cropmark, with a reasonably substantial ditch encountered at all three points where they intersected – a result that was in marked contrast to the largely negative results of the preceding geophysical survey (see above). This feature was up to 2m wide and survived to a depth of 0.80m. Finds were however limited to a small number of worked flints and samples taken from its fills produced only small quantities of charcoal. Several pits were recorded within the ring-ditch and whilst it is suggested that they could have been post-holes their nature remains uncertain, particularly as none produced any dating evidence. Without any evidence to the contrary it remains most likely that the ring-ditch was indeed associated with a barrow monument of Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age date.
Information from draft report.
See NHER 65421 for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 26 February 2022.