Monument record TYY 044 - A Roman salt production site visible as a Red Hill south of Painter's Wood, Trimley St Mary

A Roman, and possibly Iron Age, salt production site is visible as a levelled Red Hill, centred on TM 26643584, on aerial photographs taken in August 2002. The Red Hill is visible an area of red soil against the browner soil of the rest of the ploughed field and is located where the edge of the reclaimed marshland changes into higher, dryer ground. The Red Hill measures roughly 50m by 15m and may represent the levelled remains of a low mound of waste product and debris from Iron Age and Roman salt production. (S1) (S2) (S3) (S4)
A site visit to investigate the feature was undertaken on 20th November 2002 by the Suffolk Archaeological Service Field Team. The feature contained enough briquetage to be confident that the site was related to Iron Age or Roman salt production as well as a couple of Roman sherds. On the ground the soil is a deep, purplish red with lumps of charcoaly burnt clay. (S5)
Finds from field walkover include 16 fragments briquetage, 3 Rom peg tile frags, 1 sherd Rom greyware, 1 Rom tile fragment. S6
See TYY 004 and TYY 006 for other possible salt working sites in the immediate area.