Monument record 1226/0/2 - Medieval Mound (Morphed Aerial Archaeology Interpretation)

Earthwork: Non-destructive fieldwork

{2} The site has been misinterpreted in the past, notably by the OS who saw it as a large rectangular depression with an almost square island in the west corner and a small circular one to the south east. This situation is clearly the result of relatively recent destruction. The small island stands on a rectangular platform slightly above the level of the bottom of the surrounding ponds. It appears that there was originally one large island occupying the south west of the site and that the small island is the only fragment of the east part that has survived to its original height.
This large island was asymmetrically placed, partly perhaps to provide a fishpond on the north east side, but also because of the natural topography of the small valley in which the site lies. The wide part of the pond occupies the lowest part of the valley. The water was retained in the pond and around the island by a massive dam on the south east side, up to 2m high. Below the dam and parallel with it is a long narrow pond, possibly once two ponds, which turns north west at its north east end, parallel with the north side of the moat. The site is in poor condition, having been used as a nursery garden, but large quantities of medieval sherds have been revealed, particularly from the destroyed south east part of the island.

<1> Northamptonshire SMR Collection of Aerial Photographs, Used with NMR & CUCAP collections (Photographs). SNN104822.

<2> Royal Commission on The Historical Monuments of England, 1982, An Inventory of The Historical Monuments in The County of Northampton, p.119 site 8 (checked) (Series). SNN77382.

Record last edited

Jun 28 2013 12:41PM