Monument record 5940/1/2 - Undated animal cremation, possibly Roman

A truncated un-urned animal cremation burial, possibly associated with the Roman cemetery to the west

{1} Geotechinal test pits undertaken at 52 Weekley Wood Road, found an undated animal cremation in a small pit. The feature was sub-circular in plan and measured 0.27m in diameter and was 0.25m deep. The fill comprised mid-brown clayey silt containing approximately 150 highly fragmented pieces of calcined bone identified as limb and skull fragments from either a sheep or a pig, twelve fragments of fired clay and a low quantity of charcoal.

No dating evidence was retrieved from the feature, however the calcined nature of the bone from its fill suggests intensive burning from a cremation pyre as opposed to the effects of burning from, for example, a hearth or fire pit. The practice of burying cremated animal remains in small, posthole-sized depressions is an activity associated with the Late Iron Age/Romano British period recorded elsewhere in the archaeological record in the East Midlands, although its significance is less understood. In consideration of the proximity of a Roman inhumation cemetery to the west of the site, the feature may represent offerings placed within the boundary of a cemetery.

<1> Molloy, T, 2015, 52 Weekley Wood Lane, Weekley: An archaeological strip, map and record, January 2015 (Report). SNN111048.

Record last edited

Apr 23 2025 6:44PM