Monument record 3066/0/1 - Early Iron Age settlement, Park Lodge Quarry

Part of a possible early Iron Age settlement was uncovered during rescue excavations at Park Lodge Quarry in 1979 and included an oval posthole ring and a four-post structure.

{1} Rescue excavation undertaken in 1979 identified an area of probable early Iron Age settlement. Early Iron Age posthole ring defined by a roughly oval setting of nine postholes of similar depth and diameter. They enclosed an area c.6m long by c.5m wide, and of internal area c.27sqm. Postholes 8 and 10 were set c.4m apart and the remainder c.2m apart; the wider gap between postholes 8 and 10 is almost certainly the result of deeper scraping at this point. 2 undated postholes were recorded in the interior. The only direct evidence of date is a small sherd obtained from posthole 11; this compares on other early Iron Age pottery found on the site. The postholes might have held the foundations of a single or multiple-ring hut, or of either the following: 1.An open yard, serving, for example, as a small animal pen or an open storage area; 2. An open frame, linked horizontally perhaps by a series of widely spaced rods, upon which skins, hay, etc could have been hung to dry.

Thirty-four other postholes were recorded. Postholes 32 and 37 produced a possible Beaker sherd, and postholes 27, 39 and 46 fragments of pottery which on fabric grounds may be early Iron Age.
Four undated postholes of similar depth and diameter might represent the remains of a four-post structure and several pairs of postholes of similar depth and diameter the foundations of two-post structures.
The presence of 'Beaker' and Iron Age sherds in broadly similar quantities greatly complicates interpretation. The possible Beaker sherds are small and very abraded. Although most likely residual, they should urge caution in assuming that more than a fraction of the postholes relate to the Iron Age phase of activity.

Three shallow pits were also recorded. F29 produced a possible Iron Age sherd but the others yielded no evidence of date. None produced any clear evidence of function. F56 might conceivably have been a tree-hole.

{3} An early Iron Age round house and scatter of post holes was revealed by top soil stripping. The site is 100m from the 1978 excavation where a large quantity of pottery was recovered. Three small beaker pits were also found in the vicinity of the round house

<1> JACKSON D.A.; KNIGHT D., 1985, An Early Iron Age and Beaker Site Near Gretton, Northamptonshire, 20/75 (checked) (Article). SNN70122.

<2> Brown A.E. (ed.), 1980, Archaeology in Northamptonshire 1979, 15/166 (Article). SNN56490.

Record last edited

Feb 23 2022 2:10PM