NHER 65139 (Monument record) - Roman or later structural remains

August-October 2017. Watching Brief.
Monitoring of groundworks associated with installation of water pipeline between Geldeston and Barsham (Suffolk).
The attempted excavation of a drill pit at TM 3994 9149 exposed a north-east to south-west aligned wall made from tightly-packed Roman tile fragments. A second trench opened a few meters to the east exposed a similarly-aligned wall that appeared to be made of the same material. Excavation in both of these trenches was halted once these remains were exposed, with the drill pit eventually being opened at a third location to the east, where no archaeologically-significant remains were encountered.
A sample of building material fragments taken from the first wall was found to include pieces of at least two lydion or pedalis bricks/floor tiles, along with small, abraded fragments of roof tile and non-specific tile that may have been used as rubble hardcore. It is noted that the larger tiles may have been shaped to fit the wall, raising the possibility we are looking at the reuse of Roman material in a subsequent period. It should be noted that medieval bricks were recovered close to this location in 1953, along with a Roman flue tile (now recorded under NHER 40857). It is also recorded that a fragment of tile found in a deposit overlying one of the walls is potentially a post-Roman roof tile (although a Roman date was still felt the most likely).
Information from draft report. Final version awaited.
The archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2019.222).
P. Watkins (HES), 16 July 2021.