SNN114784 - Images and GIS Data from an Archaeological Evaluation East of Rushden, Northamptonshire 2018-2019

This collection comprises images and GIS data from an archaeological evaluation undertaken by Cotswold Archaeology between November 2018 and March 2019 on Land East of Rushden, Northamptonshire as part of the Sustainable Urban Expansion (SUE) programme. Five hundred and forty-eight trenches were excavated to provide further archaeological information in advance of submission of a planning application for residential and industrial development with associated infrastructure. Archaeological interest derives from known prehistoric and Roman period activity in the northern and south-western parts of the site, with subsequent medieval and post-medieval activity indicated by ridge and furrow agricultural remains across the entire site. Recent archaeological investigations to the west of the site indicated the potential for occupation in this area from the Bronze Age. Previous geophysical survey identified six foci of likely settlement activity, four concentrated in the south-west of the site, in addition to ridge and furrow remains covering a large part of the site. The results of the evaluation broadly confirmed the results of the geophysical survey. The evaluation identified archaeological remains concentrated in the areas highlighted by the geophysical survey. These principally date to the Bronze Age, Early Iron Age, Late Iron Age, Roman period and medieval/post-medieval periods. The earliest evidence identified comprised a ditch containing a small assemblage of Middle Bronze Age material, located in the northern area of the site. The full extent of any potential activity of this date in this area was masked by the later Iron Age/ Early Roman settlement. The geophysical survey identified a circular anomaly central to the site which, based on typology and proximity to dated Bronze Age barrows in the area, probably represents the remains of a barrow. The ceramic assemblage indicates that the wider area was reoccupied in earnest in the Middle Iron Age, with the establishment of three of the larger settlements on the site. The full extent of this activity is not fully defined in two of these settlements, which are masked by later Iron Age and Early Roman occupation. While the settlement in Field 31 appears to have a clearly defined enclosure, at its eastern extent, with roundhouses in the centre, no such clear division can be seen within the settlement in Fields 2 and 3. The third settlement, located in Field 29 west, is clearly defined, roughly rectangular in shape, and partly enclosed by a ditch. The settlement included roundhouses, which are in the northern half, and larger stock pens in the southern half of the occupied area. With the exception of the settlement in Field 29 west all of the Middle Iron Age activity continued into the Late Iron Age and Early Roman period; with the two main settlements characterised by a linear expansion. The dating material indicates all of these settlements were abandoned by the 3rd century AD. The Roman ladder settlement located in the southern corner of the site took its form, in the 1st century AD; with no clear evidence of any preceding activity. The occupation produced the largest assemblages of finds on site and continued into the late 4th-early 5th century AD. No remains of buildings, or industrial activity, were identified during the evaluation. In the southern portion of the site lazy-bed field systems were identified predating the medieval/post-medieval furrows, which were recorded across the entirety of the site. The two phases of lazy-bed field systems, possibly earlier furrows, are considered of medieval date, pre-dating the ridge and furrow landscape evident on the geophysical survey. The remains of a medieval/post-medieval field system were encountered across the site, as identified by the geophysical survey. This comprised the largely ploughed out bases of furrows; with alignments varying across the site. The furrows were typically spaced between 5m and 8m apart, often with gentle S-curves indicative of a medieval date with medieval and post-medieval pottery recovered from the investigated fills.