White Horse Stone, ARC WHS 97
Oxford Archaeology (South), 2004. (updated 2017) https://doi.org/10.5284/1044778. How to cite using this DOI
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Resource identifiers
- ADS Collection: 1952
- DOI:https://doi.org/10.5284/1044778
- How to cite using this DOI
Overview
An extensive buried soil horizon, cut by ditches and a large, shallow pit, was identified at the southern end of the dry valley, sealed beneath up to 1.2m of hillwash. Although the archaeological features were undated, both the buried soil horizon through which they were cut, and the overlying hillwash, yielded small quantities of pottery of late Bronze Age or early Iron Age date.
A high proportion of the pottery from the colluvium and archaeological features is flint-tempered and could be either Late Bronze Age or Early Iron Age in date. Sand-tempered fabrics (either quartz, glauconite or a mixture of the two), which are more likely to be of Iron Age date, are also present. However, the small groups of material from individual contexts, the general lack of both featured sherds, decorated sherds and relatively complete profiles makes dating with any great precision difficult.
A deliberate deposit of animal bone and pottery was found in an oval pit, on top of the chalk spur forming the western side of the dry valley. The deposit included the bones of at least two foetal or new-born lambs, adult sheep bones, and the remains of a small, Late Bronze Age or Early Iron Age vessel. Other features containing Late Bronze Age or Early Iron Age pottery included four ditches, identified at the northern end of the dry valley.
The evaluation investigated the possible line of the Roman Road between Rochester and Hastings, but discovered no evidence to support or disprove the identification. A single ditch of Roman or later date was recorded in the upper valley bottom.
An assessment of molluscs and plant macrofossils from the colluvial deposits and buried soil indicates a change from woodland to open country, perhaps as a result of human activity in the Late Bronze Age or Early Iron Age.
