Monument record MLI22481 - Medieval salt-making site at Bicker Haven
Summary
Medieval salt-making site at Bicker Haven
Type and Period (6)
Protected Status/Designation
- None recorded
Full Description
PRN 22481
Two medieval saltern mounds have been levelled on the north side of lane, several more to the south of it remain unlevelled. They were mostly composed of fine off-white sandy silt, with inclusions of ash and baked clay which looked like tipped material. Sherds of green and orange glazed pottery were also collected.{1}
Excavation revealed a hearth. A mound about 300 yards in diameter rose about 10 feet above ground level. Tipping down the side of the mound. Some post-1450 pottery was found.{2}
Excavations directed by Hilary Healey from 1968 to 1969 recorded a small group of structures apparently linked by a common occupation level. Two hearths or kilns lay roughly at the centre of the mound, arranged as a pair, parallel and linked by a wall. The hearths were aligned roughly east/west with deep stokeholes at their eastern ends. Another pair of hearths was discovered about 6.71m west of the main hearths, with little indication that they had been in use for any length of time, and the stokeholes were placed at the west ends of the hearths. Two earlier hearths were also noted below some of the features, one aligned north/south, the other east/west. A large spread of ashy material lay immediately to the east of the main hearths, interpreted as a waste heap. Pits found beneath these layers were filled with assorted debris, periodically levelled off to form the ashy layers. A small structure against the norrth side of the complex was thought to be a hut. A post hole suggested timber-framing, but whether of the hut or the hearths was uncertain. A large pit lay to the south of the complex. Remains of other structures and features were noted. Finds from associated occupation levels included pottery, lead fragments, bones and shells. Iron nails in and around the main structure suggested the presence of timber in the superstructure, and the main structure was thought to be of mud and stud construction. The main period of activity at this site was thought to be towards the end of the first quarter of the fourteenth century, and the finds suggested at least seasonal occupation of the site.{3}{5}
Sources/Archives (5)
- <1> SLI2174 Index: Parish card index of the former South Lincolnshire Archaeology Unit. QUADRING. -,1968, HEALEY H.
- <2> SLI4690 Unpublished Document: HEALEY, R.H.. 1969. PARISH FILE. BICKER. -.
- <3> SLI774 Article in Serial: J.B. Whitwell and Catherine M. Wilson. 1969. LINCOLNSHIRE HISTORY AND ARCHAEOLOGY. Vol 4 p.110.
- <4> SLI1079 Bibliographic Reference: Hayes, P. P. and Lane, T. W.. 1992. The Fenland Project No.5: Lincolnshire Survey, the South-West Fens. GAZ U8.
- <5> SLI8224 Article in Monograph: Healey, Hilary. 1999. 'A medieval salt-making site in Bicker Haven, Lincolnshire' in Lincolnshire salterns: excavations at Helpringham, Holbeach St Johns and Bicker Haven. pp. 82-101.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred TF 2525 3346 (244m by 244m) Centre |
|---|---|
| Civil Parish | GOSBERTON, SOUTH HOLLAND, LINCOLNSHIRE |
| Civil Parish | QUADRING, SOUTH HOLLAND, LINCOLNSHIRE |
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Events/Activities (1)
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External Links (0)
Record last edited
Mar 21 2021 8:35PM
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