Norfolk Heritage Explorer

Location

Full description

October 2007. Norfolk NMP.
The cropmarks of an area of fragmentary enclosures and field boundaries of unknown and probably multi-period date may be visible on aerial photographs to the immediate south of the Norwich Road at Lenwade, Weston Longville (S1-S2). The site is centred on TG 1215 1745. The site lies on the lower slopes of the valley side, on the edge of the river gravel terrace.

It is possible that many of these cropmarks relate to agricultural boundaries and enclosures of possible Iron Age to Roman date. A more coherent group of similarly aligned enclosures, possibly representing a farmstead, are located approximately 425m to the east (NHER 30314). It is possible that the two groups of cropmarks of broadly contemporary. The date of this eastern site is not certain; an Iron Age to Roman date has been suggested, although a medieval to post medieval date is also a possibility based on available map evidence, see record for details.

A possible enclosure may be visible at TG 1160 1744, measuring 60m by 38m (S1). This is surrounded by a series of parallel and perpendicular ditches, which appear to form a boundaries and trackways seemingly associated with the enclosure. Another area of fragmentary enclosure cropmarks following the same alignment may be visible at TG 1129 1771. The remainder of the site consists of fragmentary linear ditches of unknown date, which are likely to the remains of former field boundaries.

The cropmarks are quite faint in places and in places obscured by more dominant geological cropmarks. Only particularly clear linear or rectilinear elements were mapped, other more curvilinear or irregular elements were dismissed as being of potential geological origin, in particular within the eastern part of the site.
S. Massey (NMP), 31 October 2007.

June 2015. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetometer survey of land north of Weston Park.
Although the area examined coincided with the northern group of cropmarks it revealed no evidence for associated sub-surface remains. It should though be noted that the results of this survey cannot be considered to be particularly reliable, as subsequent trial trenching demonstrated that it had failed to identify many of the ditches present.
See report (S3) and NHER 65115 for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 25 June 2021.

February-March 2016. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of land north of Weston Park.
This evaluation of two of the fields covered by this record identified a range of ditches that were mostly aligned north-west to south-east and north-east to south-west - suggesting a possible relationship to the mapped cropmarks. The degree of actually correspondence between the cropmarks and the excavated features was though minimal, with the majority of the excavated features having no associated cropmarks. The small number of cropmarks that were investigated were also mostly found to have no corresponding sub-surface remains. The one exception was a north-east to south-west aligned cropmark at TG 1119 1771. Unfortunately the corresponding ditch and the majority of the others excavated linear features produced no dating evidence.
See report (S4) and NHER 65115 for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 25 June 2021.

February 2017. Excavation.
One of the areas excavated to the north of Weston Park revealed a north-east to south-west aligned ditch at TG 1119 1767 that had not been recognised by the preceding evaluation. This was close to one of the recorded cropmarks, although their orientations were not quite the same. The excavated feature produced a small number of what were probably Late Iron Age pottery sherds.
See report (S5) and NHER 65115 for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 25 June 2021.

Monument Types

• FIELD BOUNDARY (Unknown date)
• FIELD SYSTEM? (Unknown date)
• RECTILINEAR ENCLOSURE (Unknown date)
• FIELD BOUNDARY (Early Iron Age to Roman - 800 BC to 409 AD?)
• FIELD SYSTEM? (Early Iron Age to Roman - 800 BC to 409 AD?)
• RECTILINEAR ENCLOSURE (Early Iron Age to Roman - 800 BC to 409 AD?)

Associated Finds - none

Protected Status - none

Sources and further reading

Related records - none

Find out more...

• Parish Summary: Weston Longville (Parish Summary)