SNN106053 - An Archaeological Evaluation Excavation of Land Adjacent to The M1 Motorway, Junction 18 at Crick, Northamptonshire

An evaluation was carried out at a proposed development site which was bordered by Roman Watling Street. Geophysical surveys had identified extensive Iron Age and Roman sites in the surrounding countryside, and Mesolithic flints had been recovered at an adjacent site. Geophysical survey of the proposal area had identified rectilinear enclosures and a number of other anomalies. During the evaluation, the enclosures were shown to date from the 1st-2nd centuries AD; an apparently circular enclosure ditch was undated. A number of post holes were found which had been cut into an accumulation deposit, overlying a ditch-like feature, dated to the 1st-2nd centuries AD. An area of cobbling associated with a rubble deposit may have represented the remains of a stone structure or floor layer. Further possible post holes were recorded to the north of a ditch containing substantial amounts of Romano-British pottery. Three adjacent ditches which could not be dated were found in the vicinity of Watling Street. Undated linear features and a possible pit were recorded elsewhere within the site. It was concluded that the features investigated indicated a low status rural settlement.