SNN111921 - An Archaeological Field Evaluation (Access Road Phases 2, 3, 5 & part of Phase 4), in Advance of the Proposed West Corby Urban Expansion, Northamptonshire

A second phase of archaeological field evaluation was carried out by University of Leicester Archaeological Services (ULAS) in advance of the proposed West Corby Urban Expansion scheme in Northamptonshire. The work took place between September and November 2017, and concentrated on a block of 16 fields representing Phases 2, 3 & 5, part of Phase 4 and the northern access road of the development. The evaluation consisted of 187 trenches and followed on from an initial stage of trial trenching in the Se quarter of the development area that took place in 2016 (Thomas 2016). The recent work was located in the northern and south-western parts of the application area. As with the previous evaluation, trial trenches were located to evaluate archaeological anomalies identified through geophysical survey, and also to sample the surveyed areas where no anomalies had been identified. The results of the geophysical survey indicated that archaeological remains survived extensively across the area covered by the second phase of evaluation. The trenching that targeted geophysical anomalies generally confirmed their interpretation as archaeological features and revealed several core areas of settlement remains. Furthermore, archaeology was also discovered in areas that contained no geophysical anomalies. Results Several widespread concentrations of archaeological remains were located in Field 58 and ‘Great Lawn’. In Field 58 two areas of Iron Age settlement consisting of roundhouses and other features, lay close to one another and may represent either separate phases, or parts of the same wider occupation area. The more northerly cluster in this field appeared to be a continuation of the large linear spread of Iron Age occupation located to the east, and confirmed by the first evaluation, in the field known as ‘The Wood’. ‘Belgic’-style Late Iron Age pottery, associated with the cluster of features to the south, may indicate a slightly later date for the activity on this part of the field, and therefore may be a different settlement area altogether. The second core settlement area was located within the ‘Great Lawn’ field and largely corresponded to an area of geophysical anomalies on the crest of a hill. A previous fieldwalking survey, undertaken on this field in the 1980’s, had also retrieved Roman pottery from the approximate same location. Trenching revealed dense areas of Roman settlement remains, with associated pottery finds reflecting activity from the late 1st to early 2nd century through to the 3rd and 4th century AD. Overall the evaluation of this area indicates an extensive and long lived settlement throughout the Roman period. Archaeological features dating to the Late Iron Age were also found in the trenches, suggesting that settlement was established at this time and continued into the Roman period. To the west of the Roman settlement, an area of Iron Age settlement activity defined by a series of ditches and probable roundhouses, corresponded with a concentration of geophysical anomalies, and probably represents another focus of habitation. Iron Age activity in the form of ditches, pits and possible structural evidence was also revealed in other areas of the ‘Great Lawn’. These activity areas had not previously been revealed by the geophysical survey. Activity areas in the wider landscape Away from these three main core of settlement remains several large-scale linear features crossed the northern and western parts of the area, running through Fields 49, 50, 51, 52 and 56. These may reflect the presence of large boundaries dividing areas of the landscape between zones of settlement. Evidence was also discovered for smaller scale Iron Age settlement activity, sometimes in association with the large boundaries, indicating widespread use of the landscape during this period. Interim conclusions The evaluation results have shown that well-preserved archaeological remains are present across the development area. Similar to the picture presented by the last evaluation the latest trenching has helped confirm the interpretations of the geophysical survey, but has also added information by discovering remains that were not previously revealed in the apparently ‘blank’ areas. The picture appears to be one of an archaeological landscape containing several core settlement areas, within a network of landscape boundaries and smaller areas of occupation. Sample excavation of the archaeological features in the core settlement areas showed that they were well-preserved, and contained a range of artefactual and environmental evidence. Excavation also revealed that the Iron Age settlement remains were more complex than had been anticipated from the geophysical survey results, with several overlapping phases of occupation represented. The pottery retrieved from these features ranged from the Mid-Late Iron Age to Late Iron Age ‘Belgic’-style forms dating to c.AD 20-60. Activity in the areas located to the north and west of settlement foci consisted of land allotment boundaries, possible isolated roundhouses and burnt pits/hearths all of which were common across the evaluation area although not all were identified through the geophysical survey. The Iron Age remains have the potential to add important information on later prehistoric occupation of a large part of the Northamptonshire landscape that has seen little previous archaeological work. The Roman remains also have the potential to add to our understanding of the transitional period between the Iron Age and Roman periods, and perhaps provide information on how use of the landscape changed over time. The previous evaluation also revealed archaeological features relating to activity within the Royal hunting grounds of Rockingham Forest, in particular the remains of a hunting lodge (Thomas 2016). Nothing similar was revealed in the second phase of trenching although a cobbled surface found in Field 58 may have once related to a trackway through the forest.