Data from an Archaeological Mitigation South of Drayton Lane near Roundhill Wood in Staffordshire, between Royal Sutton Coldfield and Tamworth, 2022 (HS2 Phase One)
High Speed Two Ltd., Wessex Archaeology, 2023. https://doi.org/10.5284/1124343. 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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- ADS Collection: 5935
- DOI:https://doi.org/10.5284/1124343
- How to cite using this DOI
Introduction
The archive comprises the digital records and files created during the 2022 Wessex Archaeology Mitigation at South of Drayton Lane near Roundhill Wood in Staffordshire, between Royal Sutton Coldfield and Tamworth and the subsequent post-excavation assessment and analysis. It also includes scans of paper records, graphics and photographic records and digital data relating to the fieldwork and post-excavation assessment.
The mitigation exposed and recorded archaeological remains comprising ditches defining a Romano‐British enclosure, which extended beyond the excavated area. Pits within the enclosed area contained further Romano‐British artefacts. The pottery has a broad 2nd–3rd century AD focus. Post‐medieval ditches were also exposed.
Potentially the earliest datable remains from the mitigation area were four conjoining sherds from a thick‐walled vessel broadly datable to the Middle–Late Iron Age, although some handmade prehistoric fabrics continued for several decades post‐Conquest. Moreover, this pottery was found in fresh condition and alongside a larger assemblage (11 sherds) of Romano‐British pottery. Although the potential Iron Age sherds, therefore, appear at least residual, some activity on or near the site at that time cannot be entirely ruled out.
Environmental data gathered during the mitigation indicates arable cultivation in the surrounding landscape in the Romano‐British period, with a settlement containing kilns or ovens located somewhere near the mitigation area. Further environmental analysis is recommended to better understand this aspect of the remains. The stratigraphic and artefactual potential of the site is more limited, however, with no further work recommended on these aspects of the archive.
