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Summary

An earthwork ditch is visible on aerial photographs from 1946, and then as a partial dark cropmark on aerial photographs dating to 1980. It is subrectangular in plan, and is interpreted as a possible enclosure. It is likely to predate the mid nineteenth century, and the shape of the ditch is not inconsistent with a late prehistoric or Roman date. There is good potential for below-ground remains to survive.

Location

Protected Status

• SHINE: Cropmarks of subrectangular Enclosure on Home Farm Marsh, Fremington

Other References/Statuses

• Old DCC SMR Ref: SS43SE/180
• SHINE Candidate (Yes)

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• SUBRECTANGULAR ENCLOSURE (Early Bronze Age to Roman - 2200 BC to 409 AD (Between))
• FIELD BOUNDARY (Early Medieval to Post Medieval - 1066 AD to 1750 AD (Between))

Full description

C Northcote, Barnstaple, 1842, Map of the Parish of Fremington in the County of Devon (Cartographic). SDV349972.

No boundary is depicted in this location.

Ordnance Survey, 1880-1899, First Edition Ordnance 25 inch map (Cartographic). SDV336179.

No field boundary is depicted in this location, which is characterised as rough ground.

Royal Air Force, 1945, RAF/106G/LA/132, NMR RAF/106G/LA/132 5123-5124 14-FEB-1945 (Aerial Photograph). SDV349061.

A curvilinear ditch is visible as an earthwork.

Meridian Airmaps Limited, 1980, MAL/80037, dark linear cmk vis east NMR MAL/80037 007 29-NOV-1980 (Aerial Photograph). SDV349839.

A dark linear cropmark is visible.

Hegarty, C. + Knight, S., 2011 - 2012, North Devon Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty National Mapping Programme Project (Interpretation). SDV349018.

A ditch of approximately 2.5 metres in width is visible as an earthwork on aerial photographs from 1946, and parts are visible as a dark cropmark on aerial photographs dating to 1980. It is subrectangular in plan, with maximum visible dimensions of 180 metres by 60 metres, although the northern side is not visible. The ditch appears to be cut by, and therefore pre-dates, a series of parallel linear drains across the marsh. It may be part of the extant field system to the north, but it is not depicted on historic mapping, and the area was mapped as rough ground in the late nineteenth century suggesting that it was not enclosed or intensively cultivated at this stage. This suggests that it pre-dates the mid nineteenth century, perhaps by a considerable timespan. The ditch encloses an area of land abutting and just below the current 5 metres contour, and in the later prehistoric period the lower sea level would make this location more suitable for agriculture; the shape of the ditch is not inconsistent with a late prehistoric or Roman date. However it is possible that the feature is a medieval or post-medieval enclosure, and further archaeological investigation is required to establish the nature and date of this feature, which has potential for below-ground remains to survive.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV336179	Cartographic: Ordnance Survey. 1880-1899. First Edition Ordnance 25 inch map. First Edition Ordnance Survey 25 inch Map. Map (Digital).
SDV349018	Interpretation: Hegarty, C. + Knight, S.. 2011 - 2012. North Devon Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty National Mapping Programme Project. AC Archaeology Report. ACD383/2/1. Digital.
	Linked documents:1
SDV349061	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1945. RAF/106G/LA/132. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). NMR RAF/106G/LA/132 5123-5124 14-FEB-1945. [Mapped feature: #62075 ]
SDV349839	Aerial Photograph: Meridian Airmaps Limited. 1980. MAL/80037. Meridian Airmaps Limited Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). dark linear cmk vis east NMR MAL/80037 007 29-NOV-1980.
SDV349972	Cartographic: C Northcote, Barnstaple. 1842. Map of the Parish of Fremington in the County of Devon. Tithe Map. Digital.

Associated Monuments: none recorded

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV6132 - North Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty NMP Project

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