NHER 68137 (Monument record) - Probable post-medieval 'claying pits'

May-July 2014. Strip, Map and Sample Excavation and Watching Brief.
Field undertaken along route of Wissington Pipeline Diversion (Field 6).
The excavation of a portion of the pipeline easement in the south-east corner of the field revealed a series of steep-sided, flat-based pit, sub-ovoid pits, which were up to 2.60m long but a maximum of only 0.6m deep. Finds were limited to two medieval/post-medieval brick fragments and samples taken from their dark peaty fills produced largely negative results. These pits are thought to represent traces of a documented post-medieval agricultural technique known as 'claying', where pits were cut into the surface of the underlying natural deposits in order to mix this clayey material with the peaty plough soil above. This helped to prevent the drying out of the plough soil, thereby limiting the loss of material to wind erosion. Similar pits were also recorded during work to the west of this site (NHER 68134).
A watching brief maintained during the excavation of a narrower trench through the remainder of the field recorded two steep-sided, flat-based pits similar to those seen in the excavation area. Towards the northern end of the field an increasingly deep sequence of peat deposits was exposed beneath the topsoil. At one point an additional deposit was noted between the lowest peat layer and the natural geology. This brown grey silt sand is tentatively interpreted as a 'potential prehistoric surface'.
Information from report uploaded to OASIS. HER copy awaited.
P. Watkins (HES), 29 February 2024.