Monument record DAR 030 - Medieval and undated features including two Roman cremations pits, Land West of Mill House, The Street, Darsham

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Summary

Medieval ditches and pits, and undated features including two Roman cremations pits.

Location

Grid reference Centred TM 414 701 (124m by 72m) (2 map features)
Map sheet TM47SW
Civil Parish DARSHAM, SUFFOLK COASTAL, SUFFOLK

Map

Type and Period (14)

Full Description

March 2014 Archaeological Solutions Ltd (AS) carried out an archaeological trial trench evaluation. The majority of the features recorded during the evaluation were located in approximately the north-eastern quadrant of the site, and the medieval (11th - 14th century) features were wholly within this quadrant. Principally the features were ditches, and the medieval ditches were roughly perpendicular to each other. Four pits were recorded and were slight and undated, two of the pits were comparable and each contained burnt cremated bone; the features are undated but may represent prehistoric cremations. The features within Trenches 5 and 6 contained medieval pottery. The medieval pottery occurred in small numbers, but three features contained 208, 23 and 164 sherds. CBM, animal bone and shell were also present within the medieval assemblages. Sparse struck flint was also found. A fragment of a copper alloy post-medieval spur was found on the spoil heap derived from Trench 6 (S1).

Between October and November 2014, Archaeological Solutions Ltd (AS) undertook an archaeological excavation. In the event the project encountered an enclosed medieval (11th/ 12th to 15th century AD) landscape, largely confined to the north-eastern area of the site and comprising a single definable enclosure, several substantial boundary features and a short section of possible E-W aligned trackway. The enclosure may have formed part of a toft and croft-type holding inclyding backyard activity. A number of pits, including a possible pond and a well were also dated to the medieval period. Most of the pits appeared to comprise single use features, most probably dug for refuse disposal. The bulk of the medieval finds assemblage is domestic in character, comprising pottery and animal bone, but also includes a Cu alloy brooch. The medieval site declined at some point during the 14th century. Two possible prehistoric cremation deposits (undated) and a small number of post-medieval/ early modern features were also encountered. The latter included a pair of parallel ?beam slots. The cremation deposits were radiocarbon dated and produced a calibrated date range of 20-175 cal AD (93.4%) and 190-210 cal AD (2.0%) at 95.4% confidence (S2, S3, S4).

Sources/Archives (4)

  • <S1> Unpublished document: Thompson P & Fairclough J. 2014. Archaeological Evaluation Report, Land West of Mill House, The Street, Darsham.
  • <S2> Unpublished document: Mustchin, A.. 2015. An Archaeological Trial Trench Evaluation and Excavation Assessment and Updated Project Design, Land West of Mill House, The Street, Darsham, Suffolk.
  • <S3> Unpublished document: Mustchin, A.. 2015. An Archaeological Trial Trench Evaluation and Excavation, Research Archive Report, Land West of Mill House, The Street, Darsham.
  • <S4> Unpublished document: Mustchin, A., Cussans, J. and Summers, J.. 2015. Three Medieval Village Sites in Suffolk: Archaeological Excavations at Church Farm, Brettenham; Mill House, Darsham; and Semer Road, Whatfield, 2014.

Finds (13)

Protected Status/Designation

  • None recorded

Related Monuments/Buildings (0)

Related Events/Activities (2)

Record last edited

Oct 9 2017 10:02AM

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