Monument record MLI80545 - Late Iron Age/Romano-British Settlement, Horncastle

Summary

Late Iron Age to Romano-British settlement in Horncastle.

Type and Period (17)

Protected Status/Designation

Full Description

Roman remains were encountered during an evaluation on land adjacent to Southfield Place (PRN 43747a - TF 260 690). A dump deposit containing pottery dating from the second to the fourth century was identified. The pottery included domestic coarse ware, colour-coated wares, Nene Valley ware, mortaria and a single sherd of central Gaulish Samian ware. Bone, mostly from cattle, was also recovered from this deposit, as was a fragment of jet bracelet. This sealed the remains of a yard or road surface, made up of medium-sized flint pieces. It was not sufficiently compacted to suggest a long period of use. Three worked flints were incorporated in this layer (see PRN 43748). A cut at the southern end of the trench may be part of a terrace which may be associated with the yard/road with a possible ditch between them, although this was not confirmed. {1}{2} A second evaluation was carried out on land immediately to the west of the previous investigation off Southfield Place (PRN 43747b - TF 259 689). Although little definite Roman remains were identified, a possible terrace feature was encountered in one of the trenches, on the east side of the area. A gully, possibly Romano-British in date, was also identified. Fifteen sherds of Romano-British pottery were recovered. {3}{4} A subsequent watching brief undertaken at the Southfield Place development site revealed evidence of Roman settlement, extending some way south-west of the remains previously recorded. Features including two ditches, a probable ditch, a possible gully and a pit were recorded. Conjectural evidence suggested that the pit may be a quarry. Nine sherds of pottery were also discovered - a Nene valley bowl base (third and fourth century), a grey plain-rimmed dish (possibly third century), a copy of a Dalesware jar, and unspecified others. {5}{6} A ditch dating to the late Iron Age was recorded during an evaluation at the Black Swan Inn car park (PRN 43747c - TF 260 692). Aligned north to south, the ditch contained animal bone fragments and Late Iron Age pottery, plus two probably intrusive sherds of Romano-British pottery. It is possible that this feature may relate to ditched enclosures identified by aerial photography approximately 250m south-west of the site. A pit was also recorded, which was stratigraphically earlier than the late 1st/early 2nd centuries, and therefore may be Late Iron Age in date. Several later features were identified. A ditch, aligned north-west to south-east, was recut at least twice and remained in use until the late 1st/early 2nd century. Possible metalling may indicate a Romano-British pathway, possibly leading south-west to agricultural enclosure cropmarks, but this is purely conjectural, as superficial analysis suggests accidental compaction over time. Two ditch features, aligned east to west and with undercutting sides, may have been components of the same feature, forming the north-east corner of a double-ditched enclosure. These features are unlikely to have been contemporary with the above ditch, as they are different in form, and if they stayed on the same alignment they would transect the above ditch. This may indicate a change in land use or ownership during the Roman period. Two further ditches, aligned east-west, were dated to the mid 3rd century or later from finds. A Roman toilet spoon was recovered from the very top of one of these ditches. A pit was also recorded which was stratigraphically earlier than the late 1st/early 2nd centuries, but no artefacts were recovered to assist in dating of this feature. {7}{8} A subsequent watching brief undertaken at the Black Swan Inn revealed a series of ditches and pits. The ditches were probably of the late Iron age to Roman period and likely served a boundary function. The pits were definitely of that date, two of them were refuse pits and the third appears to be a small quarry. Seventeen sherds of late Iron Age to later 3rd century were recovered together with mortar and floor surface (opus signinum) fragments. This suggests occupation of the site and that there were buildings here during this period. {9}{10} Five sherds of unstratified Roman pottery were recovered from a watching brief during continued development off Southfield Place. {11}{12} A watching brief was undertaken at Banovallum school (PRN 43747d - TF 26306 901). The school lies within a documented area of Romano-British settlement, characterised by field boundaries and enclosure ditches outside the Roman town wall. No evidence of buildings were seen during the works, though pits and ditches indicative of agricultural activity were recorded, and the density of artefactual material implies that human habitation cannot be far away. The ditches appeared to be on potentially intersecting alignments, possibly forming field boundaries. {13}{14} A series of investigations was undertaken on land off Sellwood Gardens (PRN 43747e - TF 259 691). An initial fluxgate gradiometer survey recorded a wide range of magnetic variation, for the most part indicating modern features or activity. Subsequent archaeological evaluation exposed Roman remains, including ditches and pits. Modern ferrous and substantial depths of overburden impaired the effectiveness of the survey in detecting the traces of these features. A final watching brief of the land confirmed the findings of the evaluation. The work identified Romano-British ditches and pits at a depth of 0.6m beneath the present ground level. The pottery from the features indicates a high level of activity in the Romano-British period particularly in the early to mid 2nd century, although some of the pottery in Trenches 1 and 2 suggests that activity ran into the later Romano-British period. Three ditches were aligned north-west to south-east, while two ditches were aligned west-south-west to east-north-east. These correspond with the alignments of cropmarks seen on aerial photographs. These ditches represent Romano-British ditches associated with an extensive settlement present to the south-west of the walled town. The remains of five possible ditches were recorded in Trench 2 alone, suggesting that this was an area of significant activity. {15}{16} Various archaeological features and finds were reported in Field and Hurst's article: Cropmarks of settlement, field systems and trackways have been recorded (PRN 43747f - TF 2580 6890). Aerial photographs taken in 1976 show a series of rectangular enclosures, presumably small fields, 40m wide, relating to two lanes running along the river valley in a loosely planned arrangement. Further north, smaller rectangular enclosures and pits possibly indicate an area of denser settlement with features of more than one period. Whilst further to the north again are two trackways with a small rectangular enclosure apparently contained by a larger one. This complex has been tentatively dated to the late Iron Age or Roman period. Crushed floor with straight edge seen for 0.91metres beneath a drive at Rosecroft (PRN 43747g - TF2618 6927). A scatter of Roman pottery has been recorded at this location (PRN 43747h - TF2584 6938). A beehive quern and pottery was recorded at this location (PRN 43747i - TF 2620 6929). Abundant pottery has been recorded at this site (PRN 43747j - TF 2603 6922). Pottery scatter and a coin of Constans were found here in the 1960s (PRN 43747k - TF 2617 6883). {17} Several sherds of Iron Age pottery were found at this location in 1968-69 (PRN 43747l - TF 260 691). {18} Evidence of Roman occupation was recorded during a development (PRN 43747m - TF 2615 6915). When clearing land and digging foundations for new Bungalows on Mareham Lane in 1968, several walls of Spilsby sandstone and layers of cement and flint were noted together with a large quantity of pottery, including greyware, samian and colour coated ware. One badly worn and illegible orichalcum [sic] coin of the 1st century AD, probably of Vespasian or Domitian was also found. {19}{20}{21}{22} About 60ft of wall (possibly of Roman date), coins, pottery and a builder's trowel was found in the erection of a new bungalow on the east side of The Gardens, to the south-east of the Roman walled area (PRN 43747n - TF 2616 6923). {23} Several sherds of Romano-British greyware were found at 89 Queen Street (PRN 43747o - TF 2628 6915). {24} Several sherds of 1st and 2nd century Roman pottery were found, including half a rusticated jar (PRN 43747p - TF 2608 6920). {25}{26} Romano-British greyware was found at this location (PRN 43747q - TF 2604 6917). {27}{28} Several ditches were recorded dating to the 3rd and 4th centuries and a pit or ditch terminus dating to the 2nd century (PRN 43747r - TF 2581 6929). Some of the ditches are thought to represent enclosures or boundaries, and there is evidence of some of the 3rd century ditches being recut in the 4th century. It is thought that the ditches are associated with cropmarks observed on aerial photographs, which lie approximately 380 metres to the south-east. The lack of structural evidence suggests that these could be peripheral settlement features; this is further strengthened by its close proximity to a Roman cemetery, which are traditionally peripheral to any settlement. Romano-British greyware pottery dating to the 3rd and 4th centuries was found in this location in August 1947. {29}{30}{31}{32} A scatter of Roman pottery has been recorded at this location (PRN 43747s - TF262 688). {33} Numerous Roman finds were found at the site of the Drill Hall (PRN 43747t - TF 2600 6910). {34} Trial trenching identified a number of small features dating to the Romano-British period (PRN 43747u - TF 2606 6937). These included gullies and a shallow ditch containing pottery and animal bone, an iron nail and a single human bone, a single post hole was also identified. The features were sealed by a thick deposit of dark earth containing Roman-British pottery and animal bone. The features found may represent Romano-British boundaries in or close to an occupation area. The recovery of a human bone implies the presence of a burial close by and previous discoveries of human remains around South Street indicate a cemetery in the area (see PRN 41856). The pottery assemblage is no earlier than third century. {35}{36} Pottery dating to the 3rd and 4th centuries was found together with a single Iron Age sherd (PRN 43747v - TF 2636 6895). A large Iron Age jar was also found. {37}{38} A rescue excavation produced a quantity of 3rd and 4th century pottery, including Samian ware. Coins were also found including ones of Vespasian, Trajan and Constantine I, there was no record of any structural features being recorded. {39}{40} A double ditch or gully was observed in service trench just north of the junction of Mareham Road and Boston Road. Possibly Romano-British in date. {41} A geophysical survey identified a number of anomalies, interpreted as archaeological features (PRN 43747w - TF 262 691). Excavation on the site identified two trenches, and several pits and gullies, some containing Roman pottery and tile. These excavated features could not be directly related to those identified during the geophysical survey however. {42}{43} A watching brief at The Wong exposed a dense concentration of Romano-British features across the development area (PRN 43747x - TF 25812 69295). These features included ditches relating to field systems peripheral to the town as well as ditched enclosures on the edge of the extra-mural settlement. A triple-ditch boundary was also recorded. Abundant ceramic dating evidence was retrieved, spanning the 2nd-4th centuries AD. The pottery assemblage includes a range of domestic ware types with very few fine wares - a fairly typical low status domestic assemblage. A single blown waster sherd was also recovered. It is sufficiently distorted to make the vessel unusable, and is a large unabraded sherd, indicating it is unlikely to have travelled far from its point of manufacture. Therefore it is a strong indicator of the presence of a kiln. This may also suggest that industrial activities were taking place in the unwalled extra-mural settlement. A further watching brief was carried out during flood alleviation groundworks to the south of the development at The Wong (PRN 43747y - TF 25915 69039). No features were recorded during this investigation but a small quantity (16 sherds) of mid 2nd - early 4th century AD pottery and a few fragments of animal bone were recovered. {44}{45} A small quantity of Roman pottery was recovered during a watching brief on land to the rear of Southfield Place (PRN 43747z - TF 26084 68991). Grey wares and Nene Valley colour coated wares were present. {46}{47} During an evaluation at Banovallum School, several features of Romano-British date were exposed which may have been part of a right-angled field system (PRN 43747aa - TF 2639 6890). {48}{49} A geophysical survey identified anomalies almost certainly representing ditches and pits and/or burnt areas of likely Iron Age or Romano-British date (PRN 43747ab - TF 2578 6910). {50} An archaeological evaluation recorded Romano-British ditches from the late first century to the late second century, with evidence for Roman occupation in the middle to late second century (PRN 43747ac - TF 2568 6911). A small number of Romano-British copper-alloy coins were retrieved from the spoil heap. {51}{52} A trial trench evaluation at the northern end of Churchill Avenue recorded two ditches of probable late Iron Age or Romano-British date (PRN 43747ad - TF 26042 68946). Both were sealed by a thick layer of soil containing pottery (4 sherds recovered) of late 3rd to 4th century date. Further soil deposits and a possible feature of probable Iron Age/Romano-British date were located in test pits in the eastern half of the evaluated area. Subsequent archaeological observation at the same site on Churchill Avenue identified two shallow ditches that are thought to belong to a known Romano-British field system, although no dating evidence was recovered. A few sherds of Roman pottery were recovered from a buried soil. {53}{54}{55}{56} Further cropmarks to the south of the complex identified by Source 17, have been identified by the National Mapping Programme. These include ditches, large enclosures and a trackway, and are likely related to those previously identified. {57} Five test pits were dug to inform a planning application for the construction of new housing on Foundry Street (PRN 43747ae - TF 2629 6919). Evidence for late Iron Age and/or Romano-British activity was identified, in the form of several ditches and gullies containing animal bone fragments and 1st century AD pottery sherds. {58}{59} [Note from HER staff - subsequent excavation work, conducted on the Foundry Street site in December 2014, recovered a fragment from a late Iron Age coin mould and 3 human burials of probable later Roman date. This activity has not yet been fully entered into the HER, but the results can be read in PCAS report 1121 (which is report 5352 in the HER collection).] Two intercutting ditches of Roman date were identified in February 2014, during the archaeological monitoring of the construction of a new pavilion building at Horncastle Town Football Club, The Wong (PRN 43747af - TF 2590 6917). Both ditches were sealed by a thin lens of buried soil, with the earliest ditch being aligned on a roughly east to west axis, and the slightly later ditch aligned on a north to south axis. A substantial quantity of 2nd to 4th century AD pottery was recovered from both ditches and the buried soil layer, with a small quantity of animal bone also being recovered. Further redeposited sherds of Roman pottery and two Roman coins were also recovered from the fill of a modern rubbish pit on the site. {60}{61} A collection of Roman greyware sherds of the second to third century, as well as a sherd of colour coated ware, was found by the allotment holder while digging at an allotment in Horncastle (PRN 43747ag - TF 2595 6892). A deep hole was dug by the boundary hedge and the Roman pottery came from the upper layers of the hole. There were no archaeological features below this in the hole. {62}

Sources/Archives (62)

  •  Report: Pre-Construct Archaeology. 1998. Land adjacent to 5 Southfield Place. SPH98.
  •  Archive: Pre-Construct Archaeology. 1998. Land adjacent to 5 Southfield Place. LCNCC 140.98.
  •  Report: Pre-Construct Archaeology. 1999. Land west of Southfield Place. SPH99.
  •  Archive: Pre-Construct Archaeology. 1999. Land west of Southfield Place. LCNCC 248.99.
  •  Report: Pre-Construct Archaeology. May 2000. Land west of Southfield Place, Horncastle. SPH99.
  •  Archive: Pre-Construct Archaeology. May 2000. Land west of Southfield Place, Horncastle. LCNCC 248.99.
  •  Report: Pre-Construct Archaeology. Nov 2000. Evaluation at the Black Swan Inn, Horncastle. BSH00.
  •  Archive: Pre-Construct Archaeology. Nov 2000. Evaluation at the Black Swan Inn, Horncastle. LCNCC 2000.252.
  •  Report: Pre-Construct Archaeology. 2002. Black Swan Inn, Horncastle. BSH 02.
  •  Archive: Pre-Construct Archaeology. 2002. Black Swan Inn, Horncastle. LCNCC:2002.138.
  •  Report: Archaeological Project Services. 2001. Land at Southfield Place, Horncastle. SPHB00.
  •  Archive: Archaeological Project Services. 2001. Land at Southfield Place, Horncastle. LCNCC:2000.270.
  •  Report: Pre-Construct Archaeology. June 2004. Archaeological Watching Brief at Banovallum School, Horncastle. BASH04.
  •  Archive: Pre-Construct Archaeology. June 2004. Archaeological Watching Brief at Banovallum School, Horncastle. LCNCC 2004.34.
  •  Report: Lindsey Archaeological Services. Jun 2005. Archaeological Evaluation and Watching Brief on land at Sellwood Gardens, Horncastle. SGH05.
  •  Archive: Lindsey Archaeological Services. Jun 2005. Archaeological Evaluation and Watching Brief on land at Sellwood Gardens, Horncastle. LCNCC 2005.105.
  •  Article in Serial: Field, F.N. and Hurst, Henry. 1983. 'Roman Horncastle' in Lincolnshire History and Archaeology. vol. 18, pp.47-88, esp. fig.24..
  •  Article in Serial: J.B. Whitwell and Catherine M. Wilson. 1969. LINCOLNSHIRE HISTORY AND ARCHAEOLOGY. vol.4, p.103.
  •  Index: Lincolnshire County Council. Sites and Monuments Record Card Index. TF 26 NE: AL.
  •  Article in Serial: J.B. Whitwell and Catherine M. Wilson. 1968. 'Archaeological notes for 1967' in Lincolnshire History and Archaeology. vol.3, p.24.
  •  Artefact: City and County Museum Collection. LM 192.76.
  •  Index: NATIONAL ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD. HORNCASTLE. TF 26 NE: 23, 0, -.
  •  Index: Lincolnshire County Council. Sites and Monuments Record Card Index. TF 26 NE: AH.
  •  Index: SMR FILE. HORNCASTLE. TF 26 NE: AZ, 1978, TMA.
  •  Index: SMR FILE. HORNCASTLE. TF 26 NE: CI, 1978, TMA.
  •  Artefact: City and County Museum Collection. LM 219.78.
  •  Index: Lincolnshire County Council. Sites and Monuments Record Card Index. TF 26 NE: BY.
  •  Index: 1963. EAST MIDLANDS ARCHAEOLOGICAL BULLETIN. p.8.
  •  Report: Pre-Construct Geophysics. Nov 2000. Land at The Wong, Horncastle. HW00.
  •  Report: Pre-Construct Archaeology. Dec 2000. The Wong, Horncastle. HTWA00.
  •  Archive: Pre-Construct Archaeology. Dec 2000. The Wong, Horncastle. LCNCC 2000.296.
  •  Index: Lincolnshire County Council. Sites and Monuments Record Card Index. TF 26 NE: Z.
  •  Index: Lincolnshire County Council. Sites and Monuments Record Card Index. TF 26 NE: CA.
  •  Index: Lincolnshire County Council. Sites and Monuments Record Card Index. TF 26 NE: AI.
  •  Report: Archaeological Project Services. 1997. Land east of South Street. HSS 97.
  •  Archive: Archaeological Project Services. 1997. Land east of South Street. LCNCC 182.97.
  •  Index: Lincolnshire County Council. Sites and Monuments Record Card Index. TF 26 NE: N.
  •  Index: Ordnance Survey. Ordnance Survey Card Index. TF 26 NE: 7.
  •  Index: Lincolnshire County Council. Sites and Monuments Record Card Index. TF 26 NE: M.
  •  Article in Serial: WHITWELL, J.B.. 1963. Lincolnshire Architectural and Archaeological Society Reports and Papers. vol.10, part.1, p.20.
  •  Index: Lincolnshire County Council. Sites and Monuments Record Card Index. TF 26 NE: AJ.
  •  Report: Lindsey Archaeological Services. 1994. Land Fronting Mareham Road, (Phase 1). -.
  •  Report: Lindsey Archaeological Services. 1994. Land Fronting Mareham Road, (phase 2). -.
  •  Report: Pre-Construct Archaeology. 2002. Archaeological Watching Brief Report: The Wong, Horncastle. TWHS01, TWHF01.
  •  Archive: Pre-Construct Archaeology. 2002. Archaeological Watching Brief Archive: The Wong, Horncastle. LCNCC 2001.180.
  •  Report: Lincs Archaeo-tech. 2005. Construction of Bungalow & Garage, rear of 'Acacia', Southfield Place, Horncastle: Archaeological Watching Brief. SPH05.
  •  Archive: Lincs Archaeo-tech. 2005. Construction of Bungalow & Garage, rear of 'Acacia', Southfield Place, Horncastle: Archaeological Watching Brief. LCNCC 2005.95.
  •  Report: Pre-Construct Archaeology. 2007. Archaeological Field Evaluation: Banovallum School, Horncastle. BANO 06.
  •  Archive: Pre-Construct Archaeology. 2007. Archaeological Field Evaluation: Banovallum School, Horncastle. LCNCC 2007.13.
  •  Report: Pre-Construct Geophysics. 2006. Fluxgate Gradiometer Survey: Land at Horncastle. -.
  •  Report: Marc Berger. Feb 2007. Archaeological Field Evaluation on Horncastle Playing Field, Coronation Walk, Horncastle. CWHO06.
  •  Archive: Marc Berger. Feb 2007. Archaeological Field Evaluation on Horncastle Playing Field, Coronation Walk, Horncastle. LCNCC 2006.144.
  •  Report: Lindsey Archaeological Services. Nov 2008. Churchill Avenue, Horncastle, Lincs: Archaeological Evaluation Trenching. CAHO08.
  •  Archive: Lindsey Archaeological Services. Nov 2008. Churchill Avenue, Horncastle, Lincs: Archaeological Evaluation Trenching. LCNCC 2008.165.
  •  Report: Naomi Field Archaeological Consultancy. 2009. Churchill Avenue, Horncastle: Archaeological Observation and Recording. CHAH09.
  •  Archive: Naomi Field Archaeological Consultancy. 2009. Churchill Avenue, Horncastle: Archaeological Observation and Recording. LCNCC 2009.175.
  •  Map: Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England. 1992-1996. National Mapping Programme. TF2568: LI.182.1.
  •  Report: Pre-Construct Archaeological Services Ltd. 2013. Land off Foundry Street. PCAS site code: FSHE 12.
  •  Archive: Pre-Construct Archaeological Services Ltd. 2013. Land off Foundry Street. LCNCC 2012.170.
  •  Report: Allen Archaeology Ltd. 2014. Horncastle Town Football Club, The Wong. AAL site code: HOFC 14.
  •  Archive: Allen Archaeology Ltd. 2014. Horncastle Town Football Club, The Wong. LCNCC 2013.191.
  •  Electronic Communication: Field, Naomi. 2015. Information from Naomi Field. 11/11/2015.

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Grid reference Centred TF 2609 6906 (925m by 932m)
Civil Parish HORNCASTLE, EAST LINDSEY, LINCOLNSHIRE

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Record last edited

Mar 21 2021 8:35PM

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