Monument record BSD 028 - Early prehistoric and Roman activity, Land off Grove Hill, Belstead

Archaeological evaluation identified residual evidence of early prehistoric activity across the site, and a small but more definite phase of Late Iron Age/Roman activity in the northern part, with a series of ditches indicating systems of probable agricultural land management and material likely deriving from an area of nearby settlement. During the medieval and post-medieval periods the site is likely to have been in agricultural use, with small quantities of material in the subsoil and topsoil presumably deriving from the nearby settlement of Belstead (S1).

Excavation revealed a background scatter of worked flint potentially of Neolithic or Bronze Age date. However , the first incised feature potentially dated to the earlier/middle Iron Age, marking the beginning of a continuous phase of activity that extended into the 2nd century AD. The deposits were initially limited to ditches/gullies, relating to landscape management, probably for arable fields and stock control, and pits. A group of small Iron Age features located at the northern end of the site were recorded as a possible roundhouse, although the evidence for this was not compelling. Given that no definite structural evidence was recorded, but the artefactual assemblage was reasonably large, the site ahs been interpreted as lying within the area of a wider Roman farmstead, but marginally away from the main focus of occupation. Two post-medieval ditches appeared to have been redundant before the surveying of the 1st Edition OS map of the late 19th century (S2).

Excavation uncovered ditches, gullies and pits dating from the earlier/Middle Iron Age to the 2nd century AD. A possible Iron Age roundhouse was recorded at the N end of the site. The artefactual assemblage, particularly the ceramics and Roman CBM, suggests that the site lies within the wider area of a Roman farmstead.Included in the Proceedings of the Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and History annual round up of individual finds and discoveries for 2017 (S3).