Data from Archaeological Recording of an Excavation at Calvert Depot, Calvert Cutting, Buckinghamshire, 2018 (HS2 Phase One)
High Speed Two Ltd., Oxford Archaeology Ltd, COPA: Cotswold Oxford Pre-Construct Archaeology, 2025. https://doi.org/10.5284/1126542. How to cite using this DOI
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This work is licensed under a The Open Government Licence (OGL).
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Resource identifiers
- ADS Collection: 4455
- DOI:https://doi.org/10.5284/1126542
- How to cite using this DOI
Introduction
This collection comprises the reports, site drawings, animal bone recording data and photographic archive for Calvert Depot, Calvert Cutting, Buckinghamshire, WPD Mitigation (1C18IMDAR). The documentary and finds archives will be deposited with Discover Bucks Museum.
Project Summary
Archaeological Recording was undertaken on land at Calvert Depot, Calvert Cutting, Buckinghamshire, within Community Forum Area (CFA) 13 Calvert, Steeple Claydon, Twyford and Chetwode. The investigation addresses an area of agricultural land located to south-west of the village of Steeple Claydon, Buckinghamshire (NGR 468610 226035), hereafter referred to as the ‘site’, measuring 0.15ha in total.
The land within the site is required for the diversion and undergrounding of WPD high voltage electricity cables as part of enabling work within the Calvert Cutting including construction of the HS2 Phase 1 Infrastructure Maintenance Depot between Calvert and Steeple Claydon.
Re-Use Value Statement
The results of the Archaeological Recording over the wider area of the site demonstrated a low density of features within these areas, and it is not thought that further mitigation within the area covered by the evaluation is necessary. However, the excavation and the evaluation demonstrated the presence of a Roman field system that may have continued in the medieval period, and it is highly likely that this is associated with a settlement. The area covered by the evaluation was located to the north of the excavation area, and this did not expose any part of a Roman settlement. It is therefore likely that a Roman settlement is present to the south or south-west of the site, associated with the field system. This has not been clearly revealed by any geophysical survey, although there are areas around the site that have not been fully surveyed. Any further work in the environs of the site should consider the possibility of the existence of a Roman settlement associated with the field system excavated within the site. Such a settlement will have the potential to significantly contribute to HERDS objectives. The archaeological features within the site and the material culture recovered have been fully analysed, and no further post-excavation work is required.
The results of the excavation should be considered alongside any further work in the area and disseminated appropriately.
The Archaeological Recording has been partially successful in contributing to the specific objectives of the further mitigation. Elements of a Roman field system were uncovered, the orientation of which is shared by the medieval and post-medieval successor systems, suggesting a degree of continuity between these periods. The existence of a Roman field system strongly suggests the presence of a related settlement. However, the lack of material culture indicates that this proposed settlement is not in the immediate vicinity of the site. Furthermore, the limited, linear nature of the excavation precluded a full understanding of archaeological features within the site, and many were left undated. Even those features that could be dated were only tentatively phased due to the lack of associated material.
