NHER 65148 (Monument record) - Post-medieval remains

July 2019. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of proposed development site.
The northernmost of the three trenches excavated lay within the projected line of the bailey ditch of Castle Acre Castle (NHER 3449) shown on the First Edition Ordnance Survey Six-inch map. Although a considerable depth of material was encountered (with undisturbed natural chalk only reached at 1.85m below modern ground level), it is thought that these deposits were more characteristic of a quarry or chalk pit. The presence of such a feature would not be surprising given the evidence for lime production in the vicinity (the site lie adjacent to ‘Lime Kiln Cottage’ and ‘Limekiln Yard’). A single fragment of post-medieval brick was recovered from the primary fill of this large feature.
The westernmost trench revealed a single pit containing several sherds of post-medieval pottery and a north-east to south-west aligned flint cobble wall foundation. The latter was undated but probably also post-medieval. A broad shallow cut that extended across much of this trench was probably evidence for recent truncation, most likely during the demolitions of a row of adjacent cottages during the 1950s.
The third trench revealed no archaeologically-significant features or deposits.
No unstratified finds were recovered.
See report (S1) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 20 July 2021.