Monument record BAY 041 - Geophysical anomalies, Baylham Barrow Cemetery

Geophysical survey identified a number of archaeological anomalies including a ring ditch (BAY 007) previously identified from cropmarks. At the north end of block 1 are two NNW-SSE aligned parallel linear anomales, likely to be the flanking ditches of a trackway. It has been suggested that this may meet the western side of the river opposite Romano-British settlement features. Towards the southern end of the eastern ditch is an infilled pit. Two curvilinear anomalies cross the proposed trackway and may predate it. Another ditch aligned WSW-ENE is is more strongly magnetic at the eastern end and the magnetic signal gets weaker as it progresses towards the ring ditch. It is tentatively suggested that the ditch could be contemporary with the trackway as they respect its position and it could post date the ring ditch which it appears to cross. In the north-eastern corner of the site is a NW-SE alighned weak curvilinear anomaly which could be an infilled boundary ditch.Two weak positive linear anomalies may locate the flanking ditches of an entrance into an encosure or field system bounded by the curvilinear anomaly. Other magnetic anomlalies representing cut and filled features are scare east of the curvilinear feature however there are two large areas of magnetic disturbance likley resulting from human activity. This is likely to be relative recent. In Blocks 2, 3 and 4 on the southern side of Mill Lane archaeological anomalies were sparse and a ring ditch (BAY 012) identified from cropmarks was not substantiated. Two parallel, weakly positive WSW-ENE aligned linear anomalies and a tentatively identified short section of a N-S aligned returen were identified at the northwest corner of Block 2. They appear to be infilled ditches and possibly represent a trackway or small square enclosure. Magnetic anomalies definging the position of superimposed palaeochannels are present on the floodplain of the River Gipping at the southeaast of the survey area (S1).