Abstract

This is a report on the results of the two seasons of excavation that took place in a former sports ground, known as Petters Sports Field, on the north-east of Egham town centre. The first season lasted between 21 August 1976 and 14 March 1977 and was followed by a second season between 8 August and 2 September 1977. The work was funded by the DoE and directed by Martin O’Connell on behalf of the Surrey Archaeological Society. Petters Sports Field was bisected by the M25 South Orbital Motorway in 1975–6 and the rest of the field is now under a long-term threat of redevelopment.

Evidence of multi-period settlement was uncovered and at least six phases were identified, the earliest of which can be dated to the Neolithic period while the latest is as recent as the post-medieval period. The most important phase of activity on the site occurred during the Late Bronze to Early Iron Age and included a large ditch in which a hoard of bronzes, probably belonging to a bronzesmith, had been deliberately deposited. Several hut circles, together with a number of pits, were also identified which could have been contemporary with the burial of the hoard. The Roman period followed after an apparent absence of occupation in the Iron Age. The principal Roman features were a 1st century ditch and palisade trench. Part of a Roman roadside ditch was also excavated and the dateable material obtained suggested that it was already becoming infilled in the 4th century. A medieval ditch was examined as well as several small post-medieval features. Because of the lack of dating and stratigraphic evidence a number of features could not be assigned to any particular phase of occupation.