SNN111441 - Geoarchaeological investigation of deposits at the DIRFT III site, Northamptonshire

In March 2016 ARCA sampled the sections of two trial trenches located in a ridge and furrow system in the vicinity of the Clifton Brook at the DIRFT III site, Northamptonshire. One monolith sample was assessed for pollen in the ridge material and the micromorphology of a possible palaeosol buried below the ridge was investigated. The deposits were heavily oxidized, inorganic silt/clays that only poorly preserved any pollen. The results indicated a very open, cultivated landscape of the historic period. The palaeosol had some features characteristic of a Boreal soil but its date could not be confirmed by an independent dating method, furthermore cereal pollen was present at its base although this may have been introduced.