Monument record 3505/0/7 - Site of Roman vineyard, North of Hardwater Road, Wollaston

[Part of the Wollaston Quarry project] A vineyard of considerable size, covering an area of at least 11ha, was identified during archaeological excavation. It comprised rows of parallel trenches with vertical sides and flat bases. Palynological studies have found small quantities of Vitis (grapevine) pollen in the trench fills. The vineyard trenches are no earlier than the 2nd century AD and are unlikely to extend into the 4th century AD.

{1} Trial excavation in 1990 by D.Jackson. An extensive series of parallel trenches in Fields 3 and 4 are probably pre-medieval in date, and may be lazy beds.

{3} Excavated during wider archaeological invetigation ahead of quarrying at Wollaston. At the northern end of the initial quarry (Wollaston I, centred on NGR SP 4898 2646), an area of 7.5 ha of parallel trenches 5 m apart had been identified in the evaluation. The steep-sided and flat-bottomed trenches were on average 0.85 m wide and 0.3 m deep and were of uncertain function. Various possibilities were rehearsed, including open drainage or irrigation channels. Careful hand excavation of a sample of these trenches recovered stake or post holes along both sides, set into infill deposits. The spacing of the posts was irregular and probably reflected their renewal and placement over an extended period. The presence of these posts indicates a crop requiring support, with the plant itself represented by root balls about 1.5 m apart, centre to centre. The dimensions, vertical sides and flat bottoms of the trenches are characteristic of pastinatio trenches found in vineyards. The trenches at Wollaston I can be no earlier than the 2nd century AD and are unlikely to extend into the 4th century AD. Palynological study of samples from cultivation trenches at Wollaston identified Vitis pollen in small quantities.

{6} Enclosure, ditches and pit alignments, (SP 899644), on gravel at 46m above OD. Air photographs show a large sub-rectangular enclosure with associated linear ditches. On the E. one of the ditches intersects a pit alignment.

{8} The Middle Roman vineyard was constructed on largely unused land at the periphery of earlier activity. This area does not appear to have been highly valued by earlier populations and may have served a low-intensity function such as pasture, suggested by its low-lying character and the evident efforts to control flooding. Pottery recovered from the site dates the vineyard to no earlier than the mid-2nd century. It was laid out contemporaneously with its connection to Settlement 1 (3507/1/1), which was not a wealthy settlement. It is more likely that the vineyard was associated with a wealthy villa estate presumed to lie north of the quarry. The northern, southern, and western extents of the vineyard were identified, although it continued eastward beyond the excavation area. Two routeways were laid out within the northern half of the vineyard, aligned parallel to the main Roman road. A possible third routeway may have existed to the south-east, observed in the field system to the south and extending beyond the excavation area toward the vineyard. There was no evidence that any of the routeways were metalled. Routeway 1 was recorded over a length of more than 300m and measured 6m in width, continuing as a boundary ditch. Routeway 2 consisted of linear ditches approximately 6m apart. The bedding trenches for the vines were well-organised, evenly spaced, and aligned perpendicular to the routeways and boundary ditches, oriented toward the River Nene to the north-west. Five separate rows of bedding trenches were demarcated by Routeways 1 and 2 and three boundary ditches, with each row spaced approximately 40m apart. Within the trench infills, a central zone was identified where the vines had been rooted. Deliberately redeposited material along both sides revealed outlines of postholes of various sizes for vine supports. These postholes averaged 0.15m in diameter and up to 0.15m deep, none extending below the base of the bedding trench.

<1> JACKSON D., 1992, SMR Report Form, (checked) (SMR Report Form). SNN49494.

<2> Jackson D.A., 1990, An Archaeological Evaluation at Wollaston for Pioneer Aggregates Ltd. (U.K.) (Report). SNN70063.

<3> Brown A.G.; Meadows I.; Turner S.D.; Mattingly D.J., 2001, Roman Vineyards in Britain: Stratigraphic & Palynological Data from Wollaston in The Nene Valley, England (Article). SNN103331.

<4> Northamptonshire Archaeology & University of Exeter, 2009, Nene Valley: Archaeological and Environmental Synthesis (Digital archive). SNN111339.

<5> Meadows, I, 1996, Wollaston, The Nene Valley: A British Moselle? (Article). SNN74024.

<6> Royal Commission on The Historical Monuments of England, 1979, An Inventory of The Historical Monuments in The County of Northampton, Page 176 (Series). SNN77380.

<7> Northamptonshire HER Collection of Aerial Photographs, CUAP ZE 74 (Aerial Photograph(s)). SNN104822.

<8> Atkins, R and Meadows, I, 2024, Neolithic pits, late Bronze Age/early Iron Age pit alignments and Iron Age to Roman settlements at Wollaston Quarry, Northamptonshire, P35-37 (Monograph). SNN116677.

<9> Wiseman, R, Brewer, E, Luxford, R, Losh, J, Roberts, M, Jackson-Slater, C, & Boulton, A, 2020, Archaeology on Furlough: Roman Planting Trenches in the East of England (Report). SNN116499.

Record last edited

Jan 26 2026 3:12PM