Description:-
"The objective of the two-week 2016 excavation was to develop a broader understanding of the nature and survival of the archaeology to aid future seasons of fieldwork. Three trenches were excavated. Trench 1 would investigate the enclosure’s bank and ditch near a break in the bank, possibly an entrance. Trench 2 would investigate a hollow and associated earth mound in the centre of the enclosure; and Trench 3 would investigate earthworks and geophysical anomalies (interpreted as rubble) in the northern part of the enclosure.
Trenches were 30m long and 2m wide, with Trench 3 ultimately widened to 4m to better understand the archaeology in it. Turf and topsoil was removed by mechanical digger in preparation for the volunteers to excavate. In all, around 40 volunteers of mixed experience took part in the excavation under the guidance of ULAS archaeologists.
The main features in Trench 1 included a metalled surface running along the inside of the bank, the bank itself and the ditch. Outside the enclosure, the trench contained no archaeology. The bank appears to have been deliberately built-up with alternating layers of earth and stone. It is 12m wide. There is no evidence for a wall running along the top. Instead, it perhaps supported a wooden fence or a hedge; and it was most likely intended to stop livestock and casual intruders wandering into the enclosure. The ditch was c.2.5m wide but had been badly disturbed by a later trench for a ceramic pipe running down its length. This is possibly linked to the sewage farm. The ditch was filled with earth and stone rubble which might be deliberate infill, perhaps to create a causeway across it.
Trench 2 was dug across a hollow and earth mound in the centre of the site. Features identified include stone kerbing, a land drain and stone surfaces. The hollow appears to be the remains of a post-medieval pond. The land drain is of post-medieval date too and has been dug into the dark sediments in the ‘pond’, presumably to drain ground susceptible to waterlogging. The stone surface pre-dates the dark sediments but, at the moment, it is unclear whether it is related to the ‘pond’ or an earlier feature. The earth mound was built-up with thick soil layers behind a ‘kerb’ of fieldstones running around its base. This deliberate construction could be significant, perhaps evidence for a Bronze Age barrow, or a medieval windmill mound or a viewing mound in the later deer park.
In Trench 3, large spreads of stone rubble, broken roof slates and medieval pottery were uncovered as the trench was opened. On investigation, the stone rubble proved to be yard surfaces covered with demolition material, primarily broken roof slates. Within the yards were discrete features: a line of large stones, perhaps a boundary wall; and a large spread of clay, perhaps the remains of an earth floor. The earth floor formed a rectangular void in the yard surface and may show were a building once stood. Another discovery in the trench was a large stone footing. This appears to be part of a large square or rectangular structure sitting within the yard area and surrounded by broken roof slates, perhaps the corner of another building.
The presence of large quantities of broken roof slates scattered across yard surfaces, especially in Trench 3, is evidence that at least one building on site had a slate roof; and pieces of mid-13th-century Splashed-ware ridge tiles decorated with double-horn and closed-loop crests suggest that at least one building was of some status. Over 400 sherds of pottery, predominately jug fragments in Chilvers Coton and Nottingham ware, were recovered. Only one sherd of 12th-century Stamford ware pottery has been identified and could well be residual here; and there is a notable absence within the pottery assemblage, of any ‘developed’ late medieval Midland Purple or Cistercian ware dating from the mid or later 15th century. Overall, the finds tie in well with the suggested date of the occupation of the site by the Knights Hospitallers. Three sherds of residual Roman pottery were also found.
Evidence of iron working was also noted. Over 20kg of iron silicate (fayalite) hearth slag was recovered, mostly from Trench 3. Flake and spheroid hammerscale was also present in soil samples, providing further evidence that iron was being forged on site.
Overall, the first season of work has discovered that damage from the sewage farm appears to be minimal, with the medieval earthwork very well preserved. Evidence shows that the enclosure comprises a large ditch and stone-built bank. Structures, possible buildings, are starting to emerge inside, and at least one building had a slate roof and glazed ridge-tiles, suggesting it was more than a simple farm building. Pottery is consistent with occupation on the site between 1240 and 1484 and there is no evidence of earlier or later occupation, with the site probably being abandoned and demolished in the 15th century. The earth mounds in the enclosure appear to be deliberately built and may be barrows, windmill mounds or park features but further work is needed to clarify this." |