The trench's biography
Tom tells us the story of the trench:
Record, record, that’s the job in hand.
Here’s the story so far uncovered, just so I can try and get it into my head and your's, the reader.
In the trench we have the core of a Roman road (if I had a photo to show you I would, but I haven’t). It’s not your typical Roman road, like what you might expect to see in a textbook. It's missing its lovely cobbled surface. This is because on top of this layer lies the medieval plough soil, which may explain its loss, in that it has been taken up by the plough. Within this ploughsoil there has been some Roman pottery, which has been churned up with the ploughsoil. On top of all this is a lovely seventeenth century occupation layer, which so far has been interpreted as an out-building belonging to a manor house built close by. Why this interpretation one might say? Well, we've come across what has been interpreted as being the imprint of beam slots, which would have laid directly on the ground. On top of this would have been a timber wall made of wattle and daub supported by a timber frame. What is left behind for us to find is a shallow trench, left when the timber beam was taken away, leaving soil and rubbish that had built up around the building when in use to fill the space. We ahve also found evidence that might point to the building having a slate roof and glazed windows. At its centre of this building lay a rectangular brick hearth with to one side the remains of what has been interpreted as a large paved stone lined sluice. Is it a kitchen or brew house we’ve uncovered? Maybe. We have recovered a lot of animal bone, fish bone and shells as well, including oyster shells.
But the story does not stop there - it keeps growing alongside the finds that add to the interpretation. So here I am back in the trench recording everything I can like pages in a book.
Just one thing - I'm sorry to confess to the young ones amongst you, we have not come across any dinosaurs!
Ed note: In case readers are wondering, that's because archaeologists study people, not dinousaurs!
Record, record, that’s the job in hand.
Here’s the story so far uncovered, just so I can try and get it into my head and your's, the reader.
In the trench we have the core of a Roman road (if I had a photo to show you I would, but I haven’t). It’s not your typical Roman road, like what you might expect to see in a textbook. It's missing its lovely cobbled surface. This is because on top of this layer lies the medieval plough soil, which may explain its loss, in that it has been taken up by the plough. Within this ploughsoil there has been some Roman pottery, which has been churned up with the ploughsoil. On top of all this is a lovely seventeenth century occupation layer, which so far has been interpreted as an out-building belonging to a manor house built close by. Why this interpretation one might say? Well, we've come across what has been interpreted as being the imprint of beam slots, which would have laid directly on the ground. On top of this would have been a timber wall made of wattle and daub supported by a timber frame. What is left behind for us to find is a shallow trench, left when the timber beam was taken away, leaving soil and rubbish that had built up around the building when in use to fill the space. We ahve also found evidence that might point to the building having a slate roof and glazed windows. At its centre of this building lay a rectangular brick hearth with to one side the remains of what has been interpreted as a large paved stone lined sluice. Is it a kitchen or brew house we’ve uncovered? Maybe. We have recovered a lot of animal bone, fish bone and shells as well, including oyster shells.
But the story does not stop there - it keeps growing alongside the finds that add to the interpretation. So here I am back in the trench recording everything I can like pages in a book.
Just one thing - I'm sorry to confess to the young ones amongst you, we have not come across any dinosaurs!
Ed note: In case readers are wondering, that's because archaeologists study people, not dinousaurs!
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Tom completes context sheets (a wall slot can be seen in the background).
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| And here's that Roman road - the stones show the road and the level above is medieval soil. |
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