Monument record 4625 - Site of Iron Age-Roman farmstead, Norwood farm

Site of settlement extending over about 3 hectares, comprising trackway and interlinked enclosures with internal features.

{1} Rectilinear and circular enclosures associated with a linear ditch system

{3} Very faint cropmarks of ditches and a possible rectilinear enclosure, seen on aerial photos NCCAP:SP7061/002-7

{5} Geophysical survey identified a complex of anomalies covering approximately 3 hectares in the centre of the field which are clearly indicative of settlement activity. Central to the activity is a large trapezoidal enclosure located off the north side of a sinuous linear anomaly which meanders across the field on a broad north-west/south-east alignment. To the south are a series of much smaller rectangular enclosures.
To the north of the trapezoidal enclosure are several other irregularly shaped enclosures and numerous other discrete and linear anomalies indicative of archaeological features are also noted, although a geological cause for some of these anomalies cannot be dismissed due to the prevailing geology. A further possible complex of features was also identified some 150m to the north-east.

{6} Trial trench evaluation identified Iron Age and Romano-British activity within the site comprising
the remains of a farmstead, which includes a trackway, boundary ditch, internal dividing ditches, postholes and ring gullies indicating structures, drainage gullies, rubbish pits, and two cremations.
The excavated features fit with anomalies identified in the geophysical survey, and demonstrate that the remains of a well-preserved farmstead survive in this part of the site. The majority of the features in
the centre of the farmstead were dated to the Romano-British period, with those around the edges of the farmstead (drainage gullies and field systems) tending to lean towards an earlier (Iron Age) date. The settlement was therefore well established in its working landscape and long lived. The pottery indicates that the site was occupied from least the 1st century BC, possibly as early as the 4th century BC and continues through to the 3rd century AD.

{7} Cropmarks, rectangular enclosure ? (part), recorded on AP in 1978.

{8} Excavations undertaken by MOLA in 2022 revealed evidence of activity from the early prehistoric period to the modern periods. A small amount of residual worked flint were recovered from Area A, dating from Late Mesolithic to Early Bronze Age. A paleochannel was identified in the north-east corner of Area A and was visible for 37m in length. The north-eastern and eastern edge of a Late Iron Age to Roman farmstead with multiple phases of activity identified, with features including a trackway and livestock pens noted. Cremation deposits were also noted across Area A. The farmstead likely represents the focus of occupation in this area from the Late Iron Age to early Roman period. The farmstead was established in the Late Iron Age to Early Roman period and the earliest comprised possible field boundaries and extraction pits in Area A. Area A was enclosed by two large boundary ditches to the north-east and the south: the latter also had two associated deposits of cremated human remains. An to west aligned trackway, which extended to the main core of the farmstead to the west, was also present at the southern limit of the activity. The earliest activity comprised several small enclosures likely associated with pastoral farming, and a potential holding pen. In the Early to Middle Roman period, the rapid development and expansion of the farmstead was evident. Initially, a north to south aligned rectilinear system was established early in the Roman period and internal features comprised possible ovens and waste pits, but no focus activity was clearly defined within the current Area A. This was quickly replaced by an east to west aligned rectilinear enclosure system, which extended eastwards down the slope from the main core of the settlement. This was extended to the southeast in the same period. When this new enclosure system was first established the initial focus of activity may have been crop processing, as two corn drying ovens with associated waste pits were present in one of the enclosures. When the enclosure system was expanded the focus became more industrial when a pottery kiln was established in the south-eastern most enclosure. Another corn drying oven was also identified near the south-eastern limit of excavation, perhaps indicating that the focus of this activity had shifted further from the main core of the settlement. Two different funerary traditions were noted in this phase of activity. The first comprised a highly furnished, but not closely datable, inhumation burial, located at the eastern extent of the activity in Area A. The grave goods of this individual comprised bracelets and glass beads, many of which were manufactured in the Iron Age period but they were commonly present in funerary contexts throughout the Roman period. The second was a human lower leg and foot that had been placed in the base of a ditch before it was backfilled. A new boundary ditch was established in the Middle to Late Roman period which indicated the farmstead had contracted in size. The limited activity on the periphery of the farmstead in this period comprised the establishment of the previous trackway at the south of the area and a cluster of large extraction pits. The latest activity within Area A comprised two small enclosures and a small number of waste pits, indicating that the focus of the settlement was firmly back within the core of the farmstead, to the west of the current excavation area.

<1> Holmes M., 1992, Northampton, North-West Bypass: Archaeological Survey, Stage 1, p.4 (checked) (Report). SNN73443.

<2> Foard G.; Richardson D., 1983, Archaeology in Northamptonshire 1982 (Aerial Photography), p182 Harpole (Checked) (Notes). SNN100412.

<3> Northamptonshire HER Collection of Aerial Photographs, (unchecked) (Aerial Photograph(s)). SNN104822.

<4> Foard-Colby A., 2006, Archaeological Trial Trench Evaluation on Land at Upton, Northampton (SLRR Phase), November 2006, (unchecked) (Report). SNN105829.

<5> Webb, A. & Harrison, S., 2015, Land at Norwood Farm, Northampton: Geophysical Survey, 2015 (Report). SNN111218.

<6> Jeffrey, E, 2023, Land at Norwood Farm, Northamptonshire: Archaeological Evaluation (Report). SNN111217.

<7> COWLEY D.E.; FOARD G.R., 1979, Aerial Archaeology in Northamptonshire, p. 96 (Article). SNN60721.

<8> Ana Bordona Foz and Rachel Clare, 2022, Archaeological Excavation at Norwood Relief Road and Area F, Norwood Farm, Northampton, Northamptonshire, August to November 2022 (Report). SNN116963.

Record last edited

Dec 9 2025 10:17AM