Monument record 1641/0/14 - Late Romano-British Building

{1} Outside the walls, the rescue excavations to the south indicate that this pattern of dense occupation extended at least a further 100m along both probable road frontages, and continued from at least the later C1st to the C4th AD (1641/0/12 & 1641/0/14).

{2} To the rear of the road backing the town rampart was a rough-cobbled structure. It lay immediately under the plough-soil and had suffered considerably from the effects of ploughing. Part was of regular, vertically pitched limestone rubble, similar in general technique to that forming the foundation of the town wall, whilst other parts consisted of large, horizontally-laid limestone slabs or simple stone rubble. To the north-west the pitching had probably ended, when intact, in a straight edge, and along the edge were set two post-holes. These showed that the pitched rubble represented the floor foundation of a timber building.
Filling the interstices of the stonework, and continuing outside it on the west was the black soil of a rich midden deposit. This contained many animal bones, large sherds of pottery from a limited number of vessels, various small objects and fifteen small bronze coins, mostly of the final decades of the C4th. The coin evidence, and dated groups of similar pottery elsewhere, date the contents of the midden to AD 370-400, but the relationship of midden and building calls for further comment. Many of the objects were incorporated firmly in the make-up of the rubble. In spite of the possibility that parts of the looser packing had been disturbed by the plough, it is impossible to avoid the conclusion that the midden material was incorporated as packing in the make-up of the floor. As the structure thus incorporated in its foundation the contents of a midden containing pottery and coins of the final decades of the C4th, including a moderately worn coin minted no earlier than AD 394, it is reasonable to attribute the building itself to the early C5th.

<1> Taylor J., 2000, Northamptonshire Extensive Urban Survey: Irchester (Roman), Section 3.3 Buildings (unchecked) (Digital archive). SNN100749.

<2> Knight J.K., 1967, Excavations at The Roman Town of Irchester, 1962-63, p.111-2 (checked) (Report). SNN48299.

Record last edited

Sep 15 2014 4:53PM