Monument record EYE 121 - Eye Ponds, Eye

2014: Georachaeological Investigations /Palaeoenvironmental Assessment of a floodplain deposit encountered at Eye ponds was undertaken. The site was sampled from open sections by Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service and these samples were subject to palynological assessment. The onset of peat formation at the site was radiocarbon dated to the late Mesolithic with cessation dated to the late Anglo-Saxon period. The preservation was in general quite poor, particularly in the lower half of the sequence. Due to this, only a broad account of the vegetational history of the sample site can be given. At the beginning of peat inception the site is dominated by wetland vegetation such as grasses and occasional stands of alder. There is evidence of large amounts of burning with the presence of micro-charcoal within the samples during this early period perhaps suggesting clearance. Towards the top of the profile the preservation improved and evidence for human activity was recorded by the presence of cereal-type grains. Included in the Proceedings of the Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and History annual round up of individual finds and discoveries for 2014 (S2). Full report to follow.

2014: The trench stratigraphy demonstrated that the site contains palaeo-environment deposits, with a natural sequence of thick and relatively uniform peat layers. Radiocarbon dating has shown that these were laid down from the Late Mesolithic to the Late Anglo-Saxon period. Palaeo-enviromental analysis of a monolith column sample of the peat has shown that the preservation of environmental remains was variable. No other features were identified (S1).