View a printer friendly version of this page

Record Details

NHER Number:11008
Type of record:Monument
Name:Tivetshall Roman Villa

Summary

Since the end of the 19th century Roman numerous objects have been recovered from this area. These include large numbers of pottery sherds, coins, personal adornments and toilet articles. It is recorded that evidence of a hypocaust and mosaic were also recovered, leading to the identification of this site as a Roman villa. A number of Saxon brooches have also been recovered, as well as a small number of medieval objects.

Images - none

Location

Grid Reference:Not displayed
Map Sheet:TM18SE
Parish:TIVETSHALL ST MARY, SOUTH NORFOLK, NORFOLK

Full description

1897. Find of sword and coin.
1954. Roman villa discovered. Reported in (S8).
1963. Tessera and file found.
1964. Excavation produced wall plaster and pottery.
1977. Found with metal detector. Roman (S4), medieval and post medieval metalwork.
Pre-1978. Roman sherds found.
1979. Early Saxon brooch found, (S5).
1986. Early Saxon brooch, Roman metalwork found.

1987.
Iron Age, Early Saxon and Roman sherds (S6).
Middle Saxon (9th century) pseudo-coin brooch found. Also see correspondence (S10) and Polaroid No. 3750.
Amended by A. Beckham (HES), 11 January 2021.

1989.
Roman and post-medieval metalwork found with m/d.

Before 7 March 1990. Metal-detecting.
Polaroid shows Hod Hill brooch (no.11) and bow of Early Saxon brooch (no.10), addorsed Barn Side, dated as above, finder’s name and name of [2], who reported the find to NCM.
Already reported, same finder (wrongly spelling in secondary file) Romano-British lead die with graffito, Polaroid dated 2 September 1989.
A. Rogerson (HES), 9 December 2009.

1993. Metal detector finds. Roman coins.

1995. Metal detector finds. Roman coins, pottery, metalwork, Early Saxon/medieval metalwork.

1996. Metal detector finds.
Roman coins, pottery, metalwork, Early Saxon brooches, Late Saxon strap end (re-identified as Late Roman/Early Saxon, A. Rogerson 21 March 2007) (S7), medieval metalwork and coins.
See full details, drawings and identifications in secondary file.
E. Rose (NLA), 31 October 1997.

August to September 2000. Metal detecting. [1]
One Roman and one post medieval coin.
Roman steelyard arm.
Medieval and post medieval metal finds.
See lists in secondary file.
A. Rogerson (NLA), 28 November 2000.

Metal detecting 21 September 1989.
Half a late Roman (or ?Early Saxon) buckle of Hawkes and Dunning 1961 type IA.
Strap end found in 1996 and formerly identified as Late Saxon is late Roman (or ?Early Saxon), as is evident from drawing. cf Clarke Lankhills 1979 fig. 36 no. 449.
See (S7) in the Illustration Library.
A. Rogerson, 21 March 2007.

October 2005-January 2006. Watching Brief.
Monitoring of topsoil stripping and trenching for Harleston to Gissing replacement water main.
A single ditch was observed at this location during the excavation of the pipe trench. This feature produced a single post-medieval pottery sherd and a small quantity of animal bone.
Previously recorded under NHER 43959.
See report (S9) for further details.
The associated archive has been deposited with the Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2016.188).
P. Watkins (HES), 31 October 2018. Amended 21 June 2019.

September 2008 - February 2009. Geophysical Survey.
A resistivity survey identified areas of high resistance in the west and east of the field surveyed. The feature in the west is located close to the known site of a Roman Villa but both features lack recognisable formations and so only provide evidence for the possible location of the Roman Villa site within the field. Two high resistance anomalies could represent former embankments and can be seen in the centre of the field running roughly perpendicular to each other.
The magnetometer survey detected a number of linear cut features over the majority of the field and particularly two long linear anomalies that could represent former field boundaries. In the southern area of the field a small area of positive anomalies could representing cut features of possible archaeological origin and these are consistent with the position of the Roman Villa site. A positive anomaly with negative attributes of unknown origin is visible in the south-east of the field which are similar to anomalies indicating the former locations of historic buildings. No building is visible on the historic mapping and further investigation would be required to establish the nature of this anomaly. Two large concentrations of discrete positive anomalies are visible in the western half of the field forming a linear formation orientated north to south and in the north-east possibly representing a double colonnade of large post holes of a former building. If this is a former building it is of substantial size 25 x 10m. The cluster of pits are also located adjacent to several positive linear anomalies, representing former boundary ditches, which are likely to be associated.
See report (S2) for further details.
S. Howard (NLA), 19 July 2010.

September 2008.
Considerable local concern has been raised over the proposed wind farm site, and this has been reported in the national press.
See (S3).
A. Cattermole (HES), 24 October 2011.

Monument Types

  • BUILDING (Unknown date)
  • EMBANKMENT (Unknown date)
  • FIELD BOUNDARY (Unknown date)
  • FINDSPOT (Unknown date)
  • POST HOLE (Unknown date)
  • FINDSPOT (Iron Age - 800 BC to 42 AD)
  • FINDSPOT (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • PIT (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • VILLA (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • FINDSPOT (Early Saxon - 410 AD to 650 AD)
  • FINDSPOT (Middle Saxon - 651 AD to 850 AD)
  • FINDSPOT (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
  • DITCH (Post Medieval - 1540 AD? to 1900 AD?)
  • FINDSPOT (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)

Associated Finds

  • BUTTON (Undated)
  • COIN (Undated)
  • METAL WORKING DEBRIS (Undated)
  • POT (Iron Age - 800 BC to 42 AD)
  • ANIMAL REMAINS (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • ANIMAL REMAINS (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • ARCHITECTURAL FRAGMENT (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • BRACELET (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • BRICK (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • BROOCH (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • BUCKLE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • CAULDRON (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • COIN (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • COIN (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • DIE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • FLUE TILE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • FURNITURE FITTING (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • INSCRIBED OBJECT (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • KNIFE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • LINCH PIN (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • MOLLUSCA REMAINS (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • NAIL (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • PALETTE (COSMETIC) (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • PIN (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • POT (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • POT (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • POT (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • ROOF TILE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • SPINDLE WHORL (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • STRAP FITTING (Roman to Early Saxon - 43 AD to 650 AD)
  • STUD (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • SURGICAL INSTRUMENT (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • SWORD (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • TESSERA (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • TESSERA (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • TOILET ARTICLE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • VESSEL (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • BROOCH (Early Saxon - 411 AD to 650 AD)
  • BROOCH (Early Saxon - 411 AD to 650 AD)
  • BUCKLE (Early Saxon - 411 AD to 650 AD)
  • BUCKLE (Early Saxon - 411 AD to 650 AD)
  • RING (Early Saxon - 411 AD to 650 AD)
  • BROOCH (Middle Saxon - 651 AD to 850 AD)
  • BOX (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
  • BROOCH (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
  • BUCKLE (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
  • COIN (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
  • COIN WEIGHT (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
  • HUMAN REMAINS (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
  • SPOON (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
  • STUD (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
  • ANIMAL REMAINS (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • BUCKLE (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • COIN (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • HARNESS (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • MORTAR (VESSEL) (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • MOULD (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • NAIL (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • POT (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • POT (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • STRAP FITTING (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • THIMBLE (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • TOKEN (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)

Protected Status

  • SHINE

Sources and further reading

---Photograph: NCC Find Identification and Recording Service. c. 1975-2000. HES Find Polaroid Collection. HES Find Polaroid Collection. polaroid. black and white.
---Article in Serial: Gurney, D. (ed.). 1993. Excavations and Surveys in Norfolk 1992. Norfolk Archaeology. Vol XLI Pt IV pp 522-532. p 531.
---Record Card: Ordnance Survey Staff. 1933-1979?. Ordnance Survey Record Cards. TM 18 SE 2.
---Record Card: NAU Staff. 1974-1988. Norfolk Archaeological Index Primary Record Card.
---Monograph: Hawkes, S. C. & Dunning, G. C.. 1961. Soldiers and Settlers in Britain, Fourth to Fifth century..
---Publication: Clarke, G. et al. 1979. The Roman Cemetery at Lankhills.
---Record Card: Clarke, R. R. and NCM Staff. 1933-1973. Norwich Castle Museum Record Card - Roman. Tivertshall St Mary [3].
---Record Card: Clarke, R. R. and NCM Staff. 1933-1973. Norwich Castle Museum Record Card - Medieval. Tivetshall St Mary.
---Secondary File: Secondary File.
---Collection: Norfolk Historic Environment Record Staff. 1975-[2000]. HER Record Notes. Norfolk Historic Environment Service.
<S1>Article in Serial: 1955. [unknown]. Journal Roman Studies. Vol XLV, p 136. p 136.
<S2>Unpublished Contractor Report: Haddrell, S and Austrums R. 2009. Geophysical Survey Report. Tivetshall St. Mary, Norfolk. Stratascan. J2640.
<S3>Newspaper Article: The Daily Telegraph. 2008. Wind farm threatens site of Roman villa. 20 September.
<S4>Illustration: Gregory, T.. 1978. Drawing of a range of Roman objects.. Card. 1:1.
<S5>Illustration: Gregory, T.. 1979. Drawing of an Early Saxon small-long brooch.. Card. 1:1.
<S6>Illustration: Unknown. 1987. Drawing of a Roman martaruim fragment.. Paper. 1:1.
<S7>Illustration: Hadfield, A.. 1996. Drawing of a Roman/Early Saxon strap-end.. Paper. 1:1.
<S8>Serial: 1954. Council for British Archaeology Group VII Bulletin of Archaeological Discoveries. No 1. p 3.
<S9>Unpublished Contractor Report: Crawley, P. 2006. An Archaeological Watching Brief on the Harleston to Gissing Replacement Main, Norfolk. NAU Archaeology. 1137.
<S10>Correspondence: British Museum. 1987. Correspondence between a member of British Museum staff and S. Margeson regarding Middle Saxon pseudo-coin brooches. 3 December.

Related records - none

Find out more...

Norfolk County Council logo Heritage Lottery Fund logo

Powered by HBSMR-web and the HBSMR Gateway from exeGesIS SDM Ltd, and mojoPortal CMS
© 2007 - 2024 Norfolk Historic Environment Service