NHER 39230 (Monument) - Cropmarks of possible Roman trackways and ditches

January 2005. Norfolk NMP.
Linear cropmarks of possible Roman trackways and ditches are visible on aerial photographs (S1-3). These cropmarks are centred on TG 3328 3209. The cropmarks extend intermittently for up to 750m on a southwest to northeast alignment between TG 3313 3175 and TG 3348 3241. One, or possibly two, ditch-defined trackways are visible as fragmentary cropmarks. The northernmost section of possible trackway is present at TG 3344 3233 and measures at least 88m. The two parallel ditches are spaced 9m apart. A single ditch cropmark appears to continue its alignment for a further 50m to the northeast. The central section of the possible trackway is poorly represented, with only a few fragmentary cropmarks suggesting its presence. Two parallel ditches, spaced 4m apart, are present for up to 25m at TG 3326 3203. Isolated sections of ditch cropmark 34m to the northeast and 86m to the southwest may also form part of this trackway. The southern end of the trackway is represented by two parallel ditches located at TG 3316 3181. These extend for at least 60m and are spaced 4m apart. At its southern end the trackway appears to widen to 6m. A single ditch continues its western side for a further 42m to the southwest. A short section of ditch parallel to this may represent the eastern side of the wider southern part of the trackway.

A second possible trackway extends for 160m between TG 3322 3190 and TG 3330 3204. This trackway is up to 7m wide and is aligned at a slightly different angle to the longer trackway to its west. It is possible that both of these two trackways are contemporary and that that they converge in an area where they are not visible as cropmarks. Their alignment is similar to that of undated and Roman field systems to its north (NHER 39212, 39214).

Other ditch cropmarks are present in this group. Some of these are aligned parallel to the trackways and are probably contemporary with them. Other roughly west to east aligned ditch cropmarks are present at TG 3323 3209 and TG 3312 3179. These ditches may also belong to the same period as the trackways but they are too fragmentary to be positively associated with them. The southernmost of these two ditches could represent a continuation of a roughly west to east aligned ditch recorded further to the west (NHER 39229). A modern gas pipeline crosses this group of cropmarks on a north to south alignment but was not mapped.
(S1-3)
J. Albone (NMP), 24 January 2005