Series: Suffolk Archaeology unpublished report series

An HLF funded fieldwork investigation by a small professional team and a group of volunteers was carried out with the aim of identifying the location of the former medieval Downham High Warren Lodge. The approximate location of the former warren lodge was only very broadly known and an area for investigation was chosen based upon the reasonable assumption that the post-medieval High Lodge Farm was a later development on its site. Initial examination of historic mapping, visual site survey and magnetometer and earth resistance meter survey confirmed the location and presence of surviving structural remains relating to the former farm, which had been demolished in the mid-20th century. Subsequent hand excavation of five small test pits demonstrated that the foundations of the farmhouse and a garden or yard wall survived immediately below modern ground-level, and corresponded directly to the historic mapping. There was no indication that the farmhouse structure incorporated, reused or was built upon the earlier medieval lodge and the finds assemblage and general uncollected building debris was consistently of post-medieval date. This suggests that the lodge may lie outside of the investigation area and that the farm was a separate new development. However as the geophysical surveys were not complete or wholly clear, and the test pits covered only a tiny percentage of the site, the possibility for the warren lodge being in the investigation area cannot be wholly discounted. A further three test pits unexpectedly retrieved a substantial quantity of mixed Later Iron Age/Roman material from topsoil and subsoil deposits and a surviving archaeological horizon at a depth of c.0.5m-0.6m with evidence for two probable ditches. This is the first 'modern' investigation in the vicinity to have identified such evidence and it is thought to be contemporary with early 20th century records of similar deposits seen 100m-200m to the south.

In May 2017, Suffolk Archaeology Community Interest Company undertook a detailed fluxgate gradiometer and metal detector survey within a vineyard on land at Denbies Wine Estate, Dorking, Surrey. The magnetometer survey was undertaken to confirm the location of a buried Second World War tank, one of a pair of Covenanter tanks, the first of which was excavated in 1977 and currently on display in the Bovington Tank Museum. A large ferrous response interpreted as the likely position of the tank remains was recorded, which, upon excavation, was found to be the second Covenanter tank. An area of magnetic enhancement was further prospected that may identify the location of the first tank excavation. The metal detector survey encompassing the tanks location was undertaken by a team of metal detectorists. An area of c.9ha was surveyed and a number of items dating to the Second World War were recovered. These finds were primarily related to munitions, suggesting that this was a former training area. An additional metal detecting survey was carried out within the nearby Dunley Hill Camp, a site formerly occupied by troops during the war. The camp could be easily defined as many of the original structures are still extant. Artefacts recovered here, include munitions and domestic items, confirming the presence of an accommodation area.

On the 20th and 21st June 2017, Suffolk Archaeology Community Interest Company (SACIC) undertook a magnetic scanning, metal detector survey and test pitting exercise on a suspected World War 2 (WW2) dump site on the former RAF Kings Cliffe base in Northamptonshire. The aim of the project was to prospect, record and recover finds relating to the Second World War airfield used by both the RAF and USAAF. The location of a rubbish dump was written within airbase records dating to the war period. It was therefore decided to undertake magnetometer scanning to reveal its extent. A roughly triangular area of high magnetic readings was prospected and surveyed by GPS that is thought to be the boundary of the dump site. Following the magnetometer scanning and an accompanying metal detector survey, a single test pit was positioned in an area that yielded promising results. This test pit produced a wide variety of artefacts from the WW2 site of both RAF and USAAF origin, including dog tags, flying goggles, aircraft parts, ordnance and a large quantity of domestic refuse.

Continuous archaeological monitoring was undertaken at 1 Paddock Pasture Cottages, Long Melford, Suffolk, during the excavation of foundation trenches for an extension and workshop located to the rear of the property. Two site visits were undertaken, the first to monitor the workshop on the 13th November 2015 and subsequently on the 22nd January 2016 to monitor the dining room extension. No archaeological finds or features were present.

trenched evaluation - no features or artifacts of any period identified

In August 2016 a trial trench evaluation was undertaken on a piece of land at the rear of 16 High Street, Mildenhall, Suffolk, prior to the construction of new dwellings. Two trenches were excavated within the footprint of the proposed development. The evaluation trenches revealed four phases of activity indicating the site has been in use throughout the medieval period from as early as the 12th century through to modern day. The medieval and early post medieval phases are characterised by a number of pits and postholes associated with the backyard activity of medieval properties. The later post-medieval activity is characterised by the remnants of small brick structures, including an oven.

Archaeological monitoring was undertaken at Brick Kiln Farm, Hemingstone as a condition of a planning consent to develop the site. A number of visits were made to the site to inspect ground level reduction associated with the creation of an access roads and for pads from which to build a number of holiday chalets. For the most part, these works involved minimal ground disturbance and in the small areas where potential archaeological levels were reached, no features or finds were observed. Footings for a large barn were also monitored, revealing two undated features as well as an area of modern disturbance.

Watching Brief carried out during refurbishment and extension of Primark store, Westgate Street, Ipswich.

Evaluation of the tower floor prior to the potential provision of toilet/kitchen facilities Immediately below the existing Victorian tiled floor in both trenches, evidence of an earlier chalk and suspended timber floor was uncovered, likely to be of post-medieval date. Below this in Trench 1 was a solid mortar layer embedded with flints. This was interpreted as structural evidence, either relating to steps associated with the west door or perhaps a former floor surface. Below the chalk floor in Trench 2 were numerous thin layers of rammed earth and chalk. These layers were present to the full excavated depth which was 0.6m below the tiled floor and 0.25m below the level of the nave floor. This was located directly below the tower arch and is believed to be a medieval earth footing, likely to be contemporary with the construction of the tower. Whilst no definite in situ medieval floor surfaces were identified within the test pits, fragments of glazed medieval floor tiles were recovered which suggest that at least a part of the church floor was once decorated with these. In both trenches, the deposits present suggest that the medieval floor levels would have been higher than the current level of the floor in the nave. As such, the tower body is likely to be the only area of the church where deposits contemporary with the medieval construction are preserved.

Two evaluation trenches in a compound of terraced garages. No archaeological evidence was observed in either trench and the soil profiles revealed suggested that some truncation or at least topsoil stripping of the site had taken place when the Chantry housing estate was built in the 1950’s.