Series: Herefordshire Archaeology unpublished report series

The 'Edgar Street Grid', a substantial area of land just to the north of the historic centre of Hereford, is currently the subject of a strategic development study. While only part of the area is Scheduled as an Ancient Monument and it only partly lies within the Hereford Area of Archaeological Importance, it does contain a variety of significant remains, and has clear archaeological potential. Its archaeology is nonetheless relatively poorly understood and under-recorded.

As part of the Roman Families Project, a project established by Herefordshire Council's archaeological service (Herefordshire Archaeology), in which members of the local community of Credenhill, Herefordshire's Armed Forces Community, Schools and Hereford Sixth Form College were invited to attend and contribute in the investigations. This project has been made possible by funding from the MOD Armed Forces Community Covenant Grant. The focus of these excavations and the supporting geophysical survey was the site of a previously unrecognised high status Roman farm/villa complex with activity dating to between the late first and fourth centuries AD. The excavation, which consisted of a single trench, uncovered the rubble remains of a stone and mortar structure dated to between the third and fourth centuries as well as a sample of the external enclosure ditch. The ditch showed evidence for two phases in use, the final phase being similar to that of the building itself. The earliest phase could not be dated however, although kiln debris, likely to originate from a kiln located within the sampled courtyard would suggest a first to second century AD date. The excavated kiln, its condition and location is unique in Herefordshire to date. The structure has been dated to c.140AD although its construction is most certainly earlier. The structure was accompanied by a flue to the east and a pit (possible waster's pit) to the northeast.

This study was commissioned by English Heritage as part of the second (assessment) stage of the Hereford Urban Archaeology Strategy project, which commenced in February 2006 with work on the Hereford Urban Archaeological Database (UAD). Its primary purpose is to examine the townscape of central Hereford from an archaeological perspective, in order to determine what its historical components are, their state of preservation and their significance - both from the point of view of their historical importance and for their contribution to local distinctiveness and sense of place. It also looks at how the townscape as a whole has evolved over time. In short, it is a form of historic landscape characterisation, undertaken in an urban context. It takes the view that the present-day townscape is a historic landscape in just the same way as any ancient field system or deserted medieval village. It is an artefact, worked over many centuries, and is therefore as much a part of the archaeological resource as the stratified deposits that underlie the city streets.

Considerable quantities of rubble and other material have been deposited on the site of Rotherwas House and Formal Gardens (Scheduled Monument No. 1014880), Rotherwas, Herefordshire. During the deposition of this material, localised areas of the ground surface became rutted by machinery. These works were undertaken without Scheduled Monument Consent and therefore Historic England has instructed the property owner to put in place a methodology for the removal of the material and the reinstatement of any areas of disturbance. Historic England requires that these works should be undertaken under archaeological supervision and that these works are documented appropriately. The archaeological work comprised the following elements; The supervision of the removal of all material making up the bunds on the Scheduled Area, The supervision of works associated with the reinstatement of the areas of ground affected by rutting, and The production of a written and illustrated archaeological report documenting the works.

Village hall construction within Longtown. Six 30m square grids were surveyed in an area 60m wide by 90m long using a Geoscan RM15 Resistivity Meter with PA5 electrode array. The area under investigation was under permanent pasture and contained a number of subtle earthworks. The results revealed that the earthworks were related to remains of structures and boundaries. A two cell rectangular structure, not related to the earthworks, was also revealed.

Herefordshire Archaeology conducted a programme of Archaeological observation, investigation and recording at The Church of St. Dubricius, Hentland, Herefordshire during August 2020. The work was conducted as part of improvement works associated with the re-roofing of the Chancel and Nave, and associated drainage works. A series of replacement French Drains were excavated by hand together with two soakaways. Two

Herefordshire Archaeology was hired by The National Trust in order to record the course, nature, and extent of a series of paths, walks and carriage-rides which exist within Fishpool Valley on the Croft Estate. The National Trust has begun the management of areas within Fishpool Valley with the aim of the partial restoration of areas within it to a post medieval landscape park. The carriage-rides, paths and walks were an intrinsic part of this designed landscape. The National Trust have expressed an ambition to understand the layout of these route-ways and if practicable open some lengths of them as way-marked walks. The survey identified twelve lengths of route-way which survive as earthworks within Fishpool Valley. These appear to contour around the valley sides at different heights in order to benefit from a diversity of viewing points taking in either landscape views or overlooking specific features and buildings. Whilst many of the route-ways were found to have been cut by later features, e.g. quarries, some survive for considerable distances and could be reinstated as walks accessible by visitors. The re-opening of some lengths of route-ways, particularly through areas where the Trust has begun the restoration of the pre 19th century park would greatly enhance the experience of walking through and understanding the subtleties of the form and design of Fishpool Valley. This survey has highlighted the subtle complexity of the designed landscape features within the base of Fishpool Valley which in order to understand better will require further research.

Herefordshire Archaeology undertook a series of small scale, archaeological interventions outside of Merlin's cave, within Symond's Yat gorge between 2011 and 2015. Following the discovery of human remains prior in 2010. The works were necessary due to the seasonal erosion of human remains, (together with other archaeologically significant artefacts), from localised areas of the steep slope immediately below the cave site. The location and date of the burials together with the presence of a considerable quantity of human bone which appears to be eroding from the hill slope, would suggest that these were not isolated burials and that much of the area below Merlin's Cave may have been used as a cemetery. The age profile of the individuals, the location of their graves and the grave goods and the contents of the pit, raises some interesting possibilities concerning the type of cemetery and the relationship between it and the cave. (1)(2)

Historic England grant aided a programme of conservation work at Lyonshall Castle, Herefordshire. This included the re-pointing of areas of stonework and soft capping. In addition archaeological survey, recording and analysis Level 2 was required. This included Photographic / Photogrammetric Survey, production of 3D and Orthophotographic record. The works and analysis have raised a number of questions concerning the original construction and layout of the castle as well as its development. The tower keep windows are too shaded by the existing curtain wall to have been of much use in the provision of natural light suggesting that the curtain wall is either a later addition or that it has been substantially re-built.

An evaluation excavation was conducted as part of a crop-mark site discovered through aerial photography. The crop-mark comprised a length of ditch aligned roughly east / west, with an entrance-way in its centre. The location, nature and size of the ditch suggested a possible prehistoric date. A 10 metre by 10 metre square trench was excavated over the entrance way to include the ditch terminals. The ditch terminals were angles so that the entrance opens diagonally through them, pointing due north. The ditches were