Title: |
ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVALUATION AT LAND WEST OF BANBURY LANE, ROTHERSTHORPE, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE |
Series: |
John Moore Heritage Services unpublished report series
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Downloads: |
johnmoor1-217357_188350.pdf (3 MB)
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Biblio Note |
This report was uploaded to the OASIS system by the named Publisher. The report has not been reviewed by the relevant HER. The report has been transferred into the ADS Library for public access and to facilitate future research.
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Licence Type: |
ADS Terms of Use and Access
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DOI |
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Publication Type: |
Report (in Series)
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Abstract: |
The desk-based assessment has involved: • Identifying the cartographic, photographic and documentary sources available for consultation • Assembling, consulting and examining those sources • Identifying and collating the results of recent fieldwork • Site walkover The principal sources consulted in assessing this site were: • The Northamptonshire Historic Environment Record (HER) • The Northamptonshire Record Office National Monuments Record photographic collection During the evaluation stage, a thirteen tonne excavator fitted with a toothless 1.8m wide ditching bucket was used to excavate the trenches; 23No. 30m x 1.80m wide trenches, 3No. 30m x 3.00m and 1No. 40m x 1.80m. Archaeological deposits and features revealed were then cleaned by hand and recorded at an appropriate level. Archaeological features had written, drawn and photographic records made of them, and all deposits and features were assigned individual context numbers. All artefacts were collected, analysed and not retained. A Heritage Impact Assessment was carried out on a proposed solar farm of Kislingbury Road in Rothersthorpe located to the south of the M1 motorway near Northampton. The search area has a significant amount of archaeology. Neolithic activity is sporadic but has been located to the north of the proposed site. The remains of a Bronze Age cemetery are also known in the search area. There are significant Iron Age and Roman settlements to the north, which are located in the valley of the River Nene to the north of the site in the vicinity where there is a confluence with the Wootton Brook. In this settlement there was evidence for the construction of a circular Roman temple. It must be stressed here that although these lie adjacent to the site there is as yet no evidence that settlement from these previously extended onto the site. In the early medieval period the recognised activity is again sporadic. Towards the end of this period activity coalesces at Rothersthorpe which is focussed away from the proposal site. This village was located within an open field system, for which some ridge and furrow survives on the proposal site. There are no indications of settlement of this period on the proposal site. Settlement continues in the village through the medieval and into the postmedieval and modern times. The village contains the only scheduled ancient monument, listed buildings and a series of buildings that occur on the HER as buildings of historical or architectural significant that remain undesignated. On all of these there will be no impact or in one or two cases an extremely limited visual impact. The key features recognised on the site are the survival of ridge and furrow across the western part of the site. During the evaluation stage, two ditches 4/07 and 12/05 were found to contain later Neolithic pottery. The two locations were c. 100m apart. The probable ditch in Trench 6, seen as a geophysical anomaly, must be considered to be possibly of this date with its flint flake found in the fill although this could be residual. All other archaeological features excepting furrows from ridge and furrow agriculture were undated. These undated features included a ditch and gulley in Trench 2, and a possible ditch in Trench 7 continuing into Trench 11. On the west side of the site a gulley was found in Trench 9 which lined up with a feature in Trench 14 where a probable pit was also found. A ditch with two sherds of possible medieval pottery was located in Trench 15. A small pits was found in Trench 10 while A rectangular pit with rounded corners was present in Trench 17. These belong to several small discrete anomalies found in the geophysical survey. A boundary ditch is recent use was found in Trench 1. Trench 22 contained a ditch while a gully was found in Trench 25. |
Author: |
J Moore
A Čelovský
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Publisher: |
John Moore Heritage Services
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Year of Publication: |
2015
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Locations: |
District: |
South Northamptonshire |
County: |
West Northamptonshire |
Parish: |
Rothersthorpe |
District: |
West Northamptonshire |
Country: |
England |
County: |
Northamptonshire |
Grid Reference: 471233, 257603 (Easting, Northing)
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Subjects / Periods: |
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Identifiers: |
OASIS Id: |
johnmoor1-217357 |
Report id: |
3235 |
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Source: |
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Relations: |
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Created Date: |
23 Feb 2024 |