Record Details
| NHER Number: | 38662 |
|---|
| Type of record: | Monument |
|---|
| Name: | Cropmarks of Neolithic to Iron Age enclosures and ditches |
|---|
Summary
A possible curvilinear enclosure and linear and curvilinear ditches, perhaps dating to the Neolithic to Iron Age period, are visible as cropmarks on aerial photographs. The site occupies a distinctive topographical location on the hilltop of a spur of land overlooking the valley of Hagon Beck to its west. It also lies in an area notable for its evidence of prehistoric ceremonial and funerary activity. While it is not morphologically distinctive, the curvilinear shape of the enclosure seems most likely to belong to a prehistoric site, an interpretation supported by its topographical and archaeological context. The function of the enclosure is not clear. It could be a ring ditch which surrounded a Bronze Age round barrow, but its relationship with the surrounding ditches, which seem likely to be contemporary, suggests that it was an enclosure. It should be noted that the archaeological origin of the cropmarks is not certain.
Images - none
Location
| Grid Reference: | TG 2154 3770 |
|---|
| Map Sheet: | TG23NW |
|---|
| Parish: | ROUGHTON, NORTH NORFOLK, NORFOLK |
|---|
Full description
June 2004, Norfolk NMP.
A possible curvilinear enclosure is visible as a cropmark on aerial photographs (S1), centred at TG 2153 3771. Its morphology, topographical setting and proximity to other prehistoric ceremonial and funerary monuments as well as probable Iron Age to Romano-British field systems, suggest that it dates to the prehistoric (i.e. Neolithic to Iron Age) period. The fact that its north-eastern and south-western halves do not join up, and that the south-western half appears to join a linear ditch which extends beyond the end of the enclosure, suggests that it is not a ring ditch which surrounded a former barrow. Rather, it is likely to have been an enclosure which performed some kind of agricultural, domestic, industrial or ceremonial function. It should be noted, however, that the cropmarks are not particularly clear, and are visible on only one set of aerial photographs. The archaeological origin and significance of the cropmarks is therefore uncertain.
The enclosure is defined by a narrow ditch. It is sub-circular in shape and measures approximately 28m in diameter. The cropmarks are not clear enough to tell whether any of the breaks in the ditch define genuine entrances.
(S1)
S. Tremlett (NMP), 10 June 2004.
Monument Types
- CURVILINEAR ENCLOSURE (Unknown date)
- DITCH (Unknown date)
- RING DITCH (Unknown date)
- CURVILINEAR ENCLOSURE (Late Prehistoric - 4000 BC to 42 AD)
- DITCH (Late Prehistoric - 4000 BC to 42 AD)
- RING DITCH (Late Prehistoric - 4000 BC to 42 AD)
- ROUND BARROW? (Bronze Age - 2350 BC to 701 BC)
Associated Finds - none
Protected Status - none
Sources and further reading
| <S1> | Vertical Aerial Photograph: BKS. 1987. BKS 3480-1 04-JUL-1987 (NCC 0172-3). |
Related records - none
Find out more...