AREA MANAGEMENT :-

Part excavate Site in/or adjacent to highway. {Source Work 486.}

Source 2428 refers to possible millstone found at this site according to a letter from David King (copy in 010.12 dated 22/02/1996).

1978 - Geophysical survey by English Heritage Ancient Monuments Laboratory. The survey has convincingly indicated the large extent and varying intensities of archaeological activity at the site. Magnetic anomalies are widespread although rather weak for an area of high magnetic susceptibility suggesting that occupational activity was not substantial. In the area downslope from the temple the two techniques complement each other. {Source Work 484.}

1978 - An interim report on some of the finds from the site has been given of two bronze figurines of Mercury, a caduceus, cockerel, goat and animal. The small limestone altar also shows Mercury and was re-used in the floor of one of the post-temple structures. {Source Work 10464.}

1978 42 bracelets and 52 cast rinfs from the Roman temple site were analysed qualitatively by X-Ray Flourescance. See Source Work 13779 for a discussion of the typology and phasing of the objects and methods of manufacture.

1977-79 - Archaeological evidence identified during a series of excavations at West Hill, Uley has been ascribed to eight phases. Of these, site phase 1, phases 2 a-d and phases 3 a-c relate to a sequence of ditches and wooden structures that appear to have undergone gradual and piecemeal development between the late Iron Age (or earlier) and the end of the 1st century AD.

The developments of the 2nd to early 5th century, recorded as phases 4a-b, phases 5a-e and phases 6a-b include construction of a series of stone built structures believed to focus on a temple building. Construction began following the clearance of previous structures from the site in around 100AD and included a square temple with cella and ambulatories (Structure II); a possible shopping/commercial building (Structure I); a domestic building (Structure IV); a possible hostel with baths (Structure X); and a cobbled courtyard area. Structure X was demolished at some point in the 3rd century and replaced by another stone-built building (Structure IX) in the early 4th century.

The buildings fluctuated in size throughout the Roman period, and a fairly site-wide phase of regeneration works around 350 AD appears to have included reduction in size of structure I, construction of a new portico for the temple, robbing of the walls of structure IV, demolition of structure IX and the construction of two new buildings, Structures XIV (timber-framed ) and XIII (likely also timber-framed). Structures II, XIV, and XIII, and the courtyard, appear to have continued in use until the clearance of the site between 400 and 420 AD.

Following clearance of the site in the early 5th century AD, phases 7 (a-c) continued until at least the 7th century. After 420AD a timber hall or basilican church (Structure XI) with attached baptistery was constructed on the former temple site, surrounded by a turf bank (Structure XIX) with two wooden entrances (Structures VI and XV). The timber hall or church was replaced with a stone structure (Structure VIII) and separate baptistery (Structure VII) in the early 6th century, with an apse added to the church in the late 6th or early 7th century. An open-sided stone structure of unknown purpose is known to have been in use at the same time as the stone church (Str VIII) but could have originated as early as the 2nd century AD. These features are believed to have decayed at some point in or after the 7th century and been superseded on the site by two settings of post-holes (Structure XII) and a pit containing an antler, with decay of the last features on site taking place by the medieval period. {Source Work 2428.}

1982 - The find of the bronze figurine of a cockerel is noted in passing in an article on a similar find from Great Canfield in Essex; the cockerel is noted as a follower of the gods Mercury, Harpocrates and other local deities; these are not uncommon finds from across Roman Britain. {Source Work 10950.}

1987 - 18 Roman brooches were analsed by Atomic Absorbtion Spectroscopy and a further 23 by qualitative X-Ray Flourescance. The results are discussed in the light of those obtained from similar brooches from other sites. 11 enamels were also described. {Source Work 13781.}

1987 - The overall quantities of material from this Roman temple site were small but some evidence for the following processes was noted: iron smelting and smithing, copper alloy working and silver refining by lead soaking. {Source Work 13782.}

1988 - Analysis of twelve whetstones and thirteen quern fragments was undertaken by F Roe {Source Work 12157.}

1988 - Fifteen Roman figurines were analysed by X-ray Flourescance and shown to be of a wide variety of alloys. The results were compared with those for similar objects from France. {Sourse Work 13780.}

1989 - Analysis of the plant macrofossils, arthropods and charcoal was undertaken by M Girling and V Straker. Mineralised seeds and arthropods from a Romano-British latrine pit give evidence of human excrement, rotting organic material and animal fodder in the form of seeds of plants cut from managed grassland, and possibly fed to the goat herd kept in the vicinity of the temple. The charcoal, most of which came from ritual contexts, was all of native British taxa, predominantly oak, ash and pomnoidae {Source Work 12159.}

1989 - A small number of window glass fragments from the Romano-British ritual complex at West Hill, Uley, were analysed by the Anciend Monument Laboratory. All the fragments were shown to be soda-lime-silica glass. Typological study has shown that some fragments were compositionally distinct from the Roman fragments. The post-Roman fragments were all of identical composition and may come from the same window pane. Some of these fragments had red streaking in the glass and the composition indicated that they were copper ruby glass {Source Work 12161.}

January 15th 1998 - site visit by TG and JW with Robin Nicol (FRCA) who stated that the land was minimally cultivated under an agreement with EH.

2009 - Generally satisfactory but with minor localised problems. {Source Work 9917.}

2019 - This monument was previously also recorded within the Historic England National Record of the Historic Environment. Additional information from that record, formerly held within the AMIE database, is quoted below:

Historic England UI - 205224 , NMR - ST 79 NE 130 "A ring ditch and penannular ditch were visible as cropmarks on aerial photographs and were mapped as part of the Severn Vale NMP Project. The ring ditch measures about 19metres in diameter and centred at ST 78849 99674. The other ditch is 12metres in diameter and centred at ST 78805 99628. They are both within the scheduled area of the West Hill Romano-Celtic Complex. If they date to the Roman period they may be associated with the possible settlement and temple complex (Monument Number 205240), but they may also be earlier in date. Ring ditches can often be the levelled remains of barrows (7) " {Source Work 4249.}

Historic England UI - 205240 , NMR - ST 79 NE 28 "ST 789997: The Romano-British temple complex, at West Hill, was first revealed by a pipe trench dug by the Severn and Trent Water Authority in the summer of 1976. A subsequent rescue excavation in 1977-8 by Ann Ellison revealed further details of the temple, Iron Age and post temple features. The temple was of square Romano-Celtic type consisting of a central cella surrounded by an ambulatory and was built in the second quarter of the fourth century AD. Directly beneath the temple complex was a series of slots and post holes of a small rectangular structure with a rough worn cobble floor. It is thought to be a third century Roman religious building on the evidence of associated coin and votive object finds. To the east of the temple stood the foundations of an open sided polygonal structure which may have formed the surround for ritual focus. Pottery evidence suggests it was associated with the post temple remains. These consisted of a stone and timber building incorporating the Roman stone altar in its flooring and a small masonry building which may have been the foundations of a tower-like structure. Both were built immediately after the temple was demolished in 380 AD. South east of the temple lay a range of rooms, probably shops or domestic premises which were occupied during the third century. The rooms were characterised by simple worn cobble floors hearths and fire places, incorportating sandstone roofing tiles. Theses rooms were probably demolished when the temple was built. Beneath the temple complex and its courtyards lay a series of palisaded trenches and a ditch. Within this enclosure were two timber structures. Associated finds included three infant burials, two deep oval pits, one containing a probable votive deposit of iron spear and arrow heads, coins and pottery. The Iron Age coins and pottery dated the enclosure to the mid or late first century AD.See illustrations. (1-2)