Monument record LMD 232 - LIA/Roman burial site and quarry site at Chapel House, Long Melford.
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Summary
Location
Grid reference | Centred TL 863 450 (79m by 34m) (5 map features) |
---|---|
Map sheet | TL84NE |
Civil Parish | LONG MELFORD, BABERGH, SUFFOLK |
Map
Type and Period (9)
- PIT (Late Iron Age to Roman - 100 BC to 409 AD)
- BURIAL PIT (Late Iron Age to Roman - 100 BC to 409 AD)
- ROAD? (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- POST HOLE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- STAKE HOLE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- GULLY (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- EXTENDED INHUMATION (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- CREMATION BURIAL (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- PIT (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
Full Description
2015: Excavation revealed one hundred and seven well-preserved features. Ninety-nine were of a Late Iron Age and Roman date, with three post-medieval pits and five natural features. Most of the LIA/Roman features were pits but others included postholes, stakeholes, gullies, a small section of possible road surface and five burials (three inhumations and two cremations) with a few gravegoods recovered. In addition, the partial human remains of at least 15 other individuals were also identified. Evidence shows that site originated in the early-mid 1st century with three pits possibly representing the remains of baby/juvenile burials. In the early Roman period (mid 1st – early 2nd century) it was primarily a quarry site, with pits dug to extract the natural clays, sands, silts and gravels required for the construction of the Roman road. Located on the eastern margin of the settlement the site was subsequently used as a rubbish dump for buildings fronting onto the road (later 1st – 2nd century). By the later 2nd to 3rd century baby/juveniles and adults were buried here. Small quantities of later Roman material (later 3rd/4th century) suggests a return to rubbish dumping but the settlement was in decline by this period.
Finds recovered from the pits include a large quatity of roman pottery including loomweight fragments, a copper alloy coin of Cunobelin (SF1, AD 10-43), a copper alloy coin Claudius I as copy, a copper alloy spoon-probe, a toilet spoon, quern stone fragments, one complete sheep carcass and other animal bone. In addition two of the pits contained a small quantity of prenatal/neonatal human bone and a very small quantity of cremated bone. These baby bones may belong to a later phase of the site when later Roman burials were cut into earlier pits, however it is possible these features are LIA/early Roman burials (S1).
Sources/Archives (1)
- <S1> SSF57849 Unpublished document: Pooley, L.. 2016. Archaeological excavation and monitoring on land to the rear of Chapel House, Chapel Green, Little St Mary's, Long Melford.
Finds (31)
- FSF45076: POTTERY (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45077: COIN (Late Iron Age to Roman - 10 AD to 43 AD)
- FSF45078: LOOMWEIGHT (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45079: ANIMAL REMAINS (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45080: HUMAN REMAINS (Late Iron Age to Roman - 100 BC to 409 AD)
- FSF45081: CREMATION (Late Iron Age to Roman - 100 BC to 409 AD)
- FSF45082: NAIL (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45083: FINGER RING (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45084: JAR (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45085: FIRED CLAY (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45087: COIN (Roman - 43 AD to 64 AD)
- FSF45088: PROBE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45089: COSMETIC SPOON (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45090: BROOCH (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45091: PIN (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45092: STUD (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45093: SOCKETED SPEARHEAD (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45094: PIN (Roman - 50 AD to 200 AD)
- FSF45095: QUERN (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45096: BRICK (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45097: TILE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45098: TEGULA (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45099: IMBREX (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45100: TILE (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
- FSF45101: FLAKE (Late Iron Age to Roman - 100 BC to 409 AD)
- FSF45102: CORE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45103: ARROWHEAD (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45104: BURNT FLINT (Later Prehistoric - 4000 BC? to 42 AD?)
- FSF45105: VESSEL (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45106: OYSTER SHELL (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
- FSF45107: CLAY PIPE (SMOKING) (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
Protected Status/Designation
- None recorded
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Events/Activities (2)
Record last edited
Aug 17 2017 2:55PM