NHER 65267 (Monument record) - Multi-period features and finds

November 2015. Desk-based Assessment.
Assessment of proposed development site.
See report (S1) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 11 January 2022.

September-October 2017. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of proposed development site.
The majority of the 26 trenches excavated revealed archaeological-significant remains, with the range of finds recovered suggesting these were probably associated with multiple phases of past activity. The excavated features were however mostly ditches, a significant proportion of which produced few finds and are therefore difficult to date. The range of alignments do at least suggest these ditches probably represent more than one phase of land division, although their dispersed nature makes it difficult to identify potentially contemporary remains.
A significant number of prehistoric finds were recovered, including over 100 handmade pottery sherds and a small assemblage of worked flints. The bulk of the pottery assemblage appears to be of Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age date, although small numbers of probable Middle Bronze Age and Iron Age sherds are also present. Much of this material was however either recovered from unstratified contexts or residual in later features. The one feature of unquestionably prehistoric date was a pit or ditch terminus that contained a dump of Iron Age pottery. Several of the excavated ditches also produced small assemblages of Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age pottery and therefore potentially represented elements of a prehistoric field system. A small pit containing a charcoal-rich fill was also regarded as a potentially prehistoric feature, although a small number of worked flints were the only finds recovered.
Evidence for activity on the site between the Iron Age and the medieval period was largely limited to a small assemblage of finds comprising Roman pottery sherds, a possible imbrex fragment, potentially Early Saxon pottery sherds, a Late Saxon strap end and a possible Late Saxon copper alloy ingot. The bulk of these objects were unstratified, with no features of probable Roman or Saxon date identified.
A significant proportion of the finds recovered were of medieval to post-medieval date and it is therefore likely that many of the excavated features were associated with these phases of activity. These included a number of ditches that produced small quantities of early medieval and High Medieval pottery. A single coin, a copper alloy knife hilt plate and a lead weight were however the only metal finds of probable medieval date recovered.
There was also only limited evidence for late medieval and post-medieval activity on the site, with finds of this date limited to late medieval/transitional, post-medieval and post-medieval/modern pottery sherds, post-medieval brick and tile fragments and a small assemblage of post-medieval and modern metal-objects. Ditches were again the only features that could be tentatively associated with these phases of activity.
The many undated features include a substantial pit that containing an assemblage of daub and several probable post-hole.
The modern metal finds include a bullet and barbed wire fragments that potentially represent debris from military activity on the site during the Second World War. The field is surrounded by the remains of several defensive structures including a spigot mortar emplacement (NHER 30781), a Norcon Pillbox (NHER 57853) and a pair of Tett turrets (NHER 60105).
A long earthwork mound noted close to the north-eastern edge of the site was found to be a dump of soil along the boundary of the field that was potentially deposited during the excavation of the nearby pond during the 19th century.
Information from draft report. Final version awaited.
An archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2025.176).
P. Watkins (HES), 11 January 2022.