| Title: |
Archaeological Mitigation Works at Land at Showell Farm, Chippenham for Stage 3 Test Pitting |
| Series: |
John Moore Heritage Services unpublished report series
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| Downloads: |
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johnmoor1-507735_189986.pdf (2 MB)
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| Biblio Note |
This report was uploaded to the OASIS system by the named Publisher. 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: |
Two areas of potential flint scatters were identified during evaluation trenching that took place in 1999 (Young and Hancocks 2006, p.10-50). These areas will be subsequently identified as Square 1 and Square 2. Both areas were situated in the south-eastern extent of the site. Square 1 was the south-western-most area which measured 36m by 30m. It was orientated north to south. The topsoil layer was initially removed via careful machine stripping to expose the ploughsoil deposit below. The varying thickness of the topsoil was between 0.15m and 0.22m. A total of 27, 2m by 2m test pits were chosen at random throughout the Square 1 area and were excavated down to the natural geology. The total thickness of the ploughsoil deposit was 0.35m and the natural geology layer was observed to exceed 0.05m in depth. Square 2 was situated 32m to the north-east of Square 1. Square 2 measured 24m by 32m and was orientated north-west by south-east. It was treated through the same methods as Square 1, whereby the topsoil was carefully removed to expose the underlying ploughsoil. Within Square 2 the topsoil deposit varied between 0.15m and 0.20m. A total of 19, 2m by 2m test pits were excavated into the ploughsoil, down to the natural geology. Within Square 2, the maximum depth of the ploughsoil was 0.40m and the geology layer exceeded 0.05m also. A total of 20% of each test pit was sieved using a 5mm sieve in order to recover lithics. The remaining 80%, although not sieved, was carefully excavated by hand, and hand sorted, to retrieve additional lithics. Where archaeological horizons were encountered they were cleaned by hand and excavated appropriately. Standard John Moore Heritage Services techniques were employed throughout, involving the completion of a written record for each deposit encountered, with scale plans and section drawings compiled where appropriate. A photographic record was also produced. The resultant spoil from the works was visually scanned, especially for finds relating to the Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age and Roman periods. The Test Pit excavations within the areas of two suspected flint scatters aimed to characterise, date and establish the type of activity that may have taken place. A total of 46 Test Pits were excavated, 27 within Square 1 and 19 within Square 2, of flint scatter 1 and 2 respectively. The flint assemblage that was recovered was a low-density spread across both of the excavated areas. A total of 45 worked flint pieces were recovered from 19 Test Pits within Square 1 and 24 worked pieces were recovered from 15 Test Pits within Square 2. The flint assemblage has been dated from the later Mesolithic period and has also been determined to have been a background scatter of human activity. The areas of proposed flint scatters were not observed in situ during the excavation of the Test Pits, and were likely affected by further ploughing in the subsequent years following the initial evaluation. Due to the small size of the flint assemblage, the activity which may have taken place at this site area is unclear, and the interpretative value of the material is limited. It is also unclear if the site area was active over a long period, or whether it was a short-term activity. The flint assemblage does prove that human activity existed on this site during the Mesolithic period. Other post-medial and modern material, including pottery, animal bone, glass, metalwork and CBM were also observed throughout the Test Pit excavations within the two ploughsoil deposits. These finds were intrusive and were not within any archaeological features. No other archaeological features or artefacts were uncovered. |
| Author: |
Christopher Whitehead
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| Publisher: |
John Moore Heritage Services
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| Other Person/Org: |
Wiltshire and Swindon HER (OASIS Reviewer)
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| Year of Publication: |
2022
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| Locations: |
| County: |
Wiltshire |
| District: |
Wiltshire |
| Parish: |
Chippenham |
| Country: |
England |
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Grid Reference: 390692, 171199 (Easting, Northing)
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| Subjects / Periods: |
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| Identifiers: |
| OASIS Id: |
johnmoor1-507735 |
| Report id: |
4197 |
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| Source: |
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| Relations: |
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| Created Date: |
23 Feb 2024 |
