SNN112323 - Moat Lane Regeneration, Towcester, Northamptonshire: Excavation Report

A programme of archaeological investigation was undertaken by Cotswold Archaeology between April and October 2013 at the request of Morgan Sindall on behalf of South Northamptonshire Council on land associated with the Moat Lane Regeneration Project, Towcester, Northamptonshire. Five individual areas were excavated within the overall development area. Additional watching brief took place at various locations during construction, and three areas were preserved in situ. The archaeological remains uncovered revealed evidence for the development of the Roman-British town of Lactodurum. Early Roman settlement in the town comprised a series of ditches and gullies forming property boundaries and small enclosed areas alongside a series of pits, postholes and occupation deposits scattered across Areas 1–5. Of particular interest was a small post-built structure in Area 1, dog burials and a fenced enclosure in Area 3 and an inhumation burial containing the remains of a small child in Area 4. Middle Roman activity was focused around the construction of the town’s defences. Area 1 provided evidence for the location of the defensive ditch, and the excavation of robber trenches revealed the probable location of the Roman town wall. Remnant deposits in the north-west of the area, a fence line and boundary ditches provided evidence for, and marked the presumed extent of, the rampart. Further evidence of rampart material, and a possible fence line marking the extent of the rampart, was found within Area 2. Other Middle Roman remains included boundary ditches and pits within Area 2, the construction of a substantial stone-built cellar and associated building alongside an alley/street in Area 3, a casket burial in Area 4 and series of small pits in Area 5. Evidence for Late Roman activity was more limited and comprised two neonate burials within Area 2 and a small number of pits in Areas 2, 3 and 5. At the end of the Roman period, a hiatus in activity was observed, marked by the absence of archaeological features and the development of a dark-earth layer. This was seen within Area 2 and possibly Area 3, but later medieval/post-medieval truncation had removed any possible evidence from the other excavation areas. Early medieval activity included a small number of ditches and pits within Area 2, and medieval remains comprised further pits and layers within Areas 2 and 3. Evidence for the outer bailey ditch of the medieval Norman motte was recorded within Area 5. Post-medieval/early modern activity in Area 1 comprised the robbing trenches associated with the robbing of the Roman wall foundations, activity associated with the construction of the mill leat and ramp and included a series of pits, small gullies and postholes scattered across the area. Other post-medieval/early modern activity in other areas comprised a small number of pits, a well alongside a series of buried topsoil and overburden deposits.