| Abstract: |
King Arthur's Well lies immediately south of Hadrian's Wall, between the curtain wall and the Military Way, at the base of one of the many steep defiles ('nicks') that punctuate the Whin Sill escarpment (on the crest of which the Wall was constructed) in the vicinity of Walltown Farm, Northumberland (NY 6806 6664), within the Frontiers of the Roman Empire: Hadrian's Wall World Heritage Site. At this locale, the earthwork remains of a rectilinear stone structure, aligned perpendicular to the Wall, and probably appended to its southern face, are visible. The character, date and function of this are obscure, since it does not conform to the dimensions of the Wall's 'regular' installations, namely the milecastles and turrets, and its position, between Turret 44b (Mucklebank), on the east, and Milecastle 45 (Walltown), to the west, is also anomalous. In 2008, it was agreed that a flagged section of the Hadrian's Wall Path National Trail should be created across the marshy area in the vicinity of the well, which would cross the structure. Following discussions with English Heritage (now Historic England), it was agreed that a limited programme of archaeological investigation should be carried out in advance of the work, to assess the character and preservation of the structure and to inform a strategy for its in situ preservation, and to minimise potential disturbance by those using the Path. Oxford Archaeology North (OA North) was commissioned by the then Hadrian's Wall Trust, to undertake the archaeological works, which were completed in September 2008. |
