Monument record 830/0/1 - Site of medieval activity, Ace Lane

Pits and probable boundary ditches probably defining 'backplot' activity throughout much of the medieval period

{1} A large sub-square pit, 1.4m in diameter and 0.8m deep, was found at the south-eastern end of trench 2. This pit produced a large quantity of 12th century pottery as well as animal bone, fuel ash slag and fired clay. The fill was homogeneous friable mid-dark brown sily clay. This suggests a single deposition of waste material.
A large irrregularly-shaped pit, 1.5m in diameter and 1.07m deep, was found at the north-west end of trench 1. Pottery recovered from the pit dates to the mid 15th century.
Another 15th century feature, most likely another large pit, was also seen, cut by the post medieval building (830/0/2). A curvilinear gully, approximately 6m in length, 0.28m wide and 0.09m deep, was recorded at the north-eastern end of trench 2. No pottery was recovered from the gully although a large amount of charcoal and fired clay was recovered from the environmental sample. The gully is cut by a narrow linear feature, 1.0m long, 0.18m wide and 0.10m deep. This has been interpreted as a partition or beam slot within the larger curvilinear feature.

{2} Several pits dating to the 12th and 13th centuries were found. Also probably dating to this period were two boundary ditches defining the south-eastern corner of the site. Although no features dated to the 14th century activity resumed in the 15th century with another two pits being identified. Due to extensive truncation across the site, further features may have been lost with only the deeper ones surviving.

<1> Chinnock, C., 2013, Archaeological Trial Trench Evaluation of Land at Ace Lane, Bugbrooke, Northamptonshire, p.7-9 (checked) (Report). SNN108740.

<2> Kidd, B., 2016, Archaeological mitigation on land at Ace Lane, Bugbrooke, Northamptonshire, April 2016 (Report). SNN110715.

<3> Crank, N. (Editor), 2017, South Midlands Archaeology (47), p. 39 (Journal). SNN111362.

Record last edited

Jun 5 2023 8:58AM