Data from a Trial Trenching at Culworth Road Chipping Warden, Northamptonshire, 2020 (HS2 Phase One)
High Speed Two Ltd., MOLA Headland Infrastructure, MOLA Northampton, 2025. https://doi.org/10.5284/1126729. How to cite using this DOI
Data copyright © High Speed Two Ltd. unless otherwise stated
This work is licensed under a The Open Government Licence (OGL).
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Resource identifiers
- ADS Collection: 4376
- DOI:https://doi.org/10.5284/1126729
- How to cite using this DOI
Introduction
This collection comprises of images, report, CAD, spreadsheet, site record and harris matrix data from trial trenching at Culworth Road Chipping Warden, Northamptonshire, 2020.
Project Summary
A trial trench evaluation comprising 42 trenches wad undertaken at Culworth Road, as part of ongoing works in advance of HS2. Trenching revealed low levels of activity in the Neolithic to Bronze Age. Activity in the Iron Age and Roman periods was probably peripherally associated with settlements to the south.
14 trenches contained archaeological features, predominantly furrows. Finds included Early Neolithic and Bronze Age flints, Iron Age, Roman, Medieval and Post-Medieval pottery, clay building material, clay tobacco pipes and animal bone. The most significant find was a piece of carved animal bone from the bridge of a stringed musical instrument. Although it was recovered from subsoil, nearby pottery was dated AD 1100–1400. Prehistoric evidence comprised five pieces of worked flint recovered from a pit, a pit or gully terminal, a ditch, a furrow and from the subsoil. All but one flint was residual. An Iron Age field boundary ditch contained animal bone and pottery. A single Roman ditch contained pottery dating to c.AD40–410. Residual Roman pottery was also found within the subsoil. Medieval–post-medieval ploughing furrows were found across much of the site, with alignments suggesting at least two phases. Extant ridge and furrow earthworks were noted at the eastern end of the site. Medieval and post-medieval pottery was recovered from across the site within the topsoil and subsoil, but no sherds were recovered from secure contexts.
Re-Use Value Statement
This archive can be used independently and/or in in conjunction with the rest of HS2 datasets in order to inform the archaeological features and periods unearthed on this route as interpretations of landscape archaeology. This can also function as a guide to digital archiving for future infrastructure projects benefiting both the commercial sector and the research community.
