Record Details
| NHER Number: | 36400 |
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| Type of record: | Monument |
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| Name: | Site of curvilinear enclosure of possible Bronze Age or Iron Age date |
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Summary
An almost sub-triangular, curvilinear enclosure of probable later prehistoric date is visible as a cropmark on aerial photographs. Although not particularly large in terms of area, it is defined by a substantial ditch. Prehistoric activity in the area is attested by the cropmarks of a possible long barrow 100m to the south (NHER 13357), and Neolithic and Bronze Age flints recovered from areas surrounding the site (NHER 19745, for example). A Bronze Age or Iron Age date for the enclosure seems plausible; a complex of more insubstantial enclosures overlapping and surrounding the site (NHER 53521) appears to be a later phase of activity, perhaps of Iron Age to Roman date. As internal features are confined to a single pit, the function of the enclosure is uncertain, but its use for settlement or as a stock enclosure are both plausible.
Images - none
Location
| Grid Reference: | TG 1276 0858 |
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| Map Sheet: | TG10NW |
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| Parish: | MARLINGFORD, SOUTH NORFOLK, NORFOLK |
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Full description
Of the cropmarks described below, only the ‘broad ditched, sub-circular enclosure’ still remains part of this record; the other cropmarks (the possible second enclosure and linear feature) are now recorded as part of NHER 53521.
2 July 1996. NLA air photography (S1).
Cropmarks indicate a broad ditched, sub-circular enclosure, with a co-joined linear feature.
A second sub-circular enclosure may be present, although it is hard to distinguish it from the geological background.
The main enclosure is likely to be late prehistoric in origin.
S. Massey (NLA), 26 July 2001.
April 2010. Norfolk NMP.
Of the cropmarks described above, only the ‘broad ditched, sub-circular enclosure’ still remains part of this record; the other cropmarks (the possible second enclosure and linear feature) are now recorded as part of NHER 53521.
The substantial sub-circular (almost sub-triangular) enclosure described above is visible as a cropmark on aerial photographs (S1)-(S3), centred at TG 1276 0858. Its morphology (its irregular curvilinear plan and dimensions) is comparable with other enclosures recorded elsewhere in the region, for example those illustrated in (S4) and (S5). While these are predominantly of postulated or known Iron Age to Roman date, a Bronze Age date cannot be ruled out in this case, particularly given the Neolithic and Bronze Age flints recovered from the surrounding area (for example NHER 19745), while a Roman date seems unlikely. An Iron Age to Roman date is more plausible for the less substantial enclosure complex and linear ditches overlapping and surrounding the site (NHER 53521), which appear to represent a later phase of activity. It was possibly used for settlement or as a stock enclosure (amongst various other possibilities). A large pit towards its northwest corner is assumed to be an internal feature, but could instead belong to a different phase of activity, or be geological in origin.
The enclosure measures 42.5m long and 38.5m wide.
S. Tremlett (NMP), 27 April 2010.
Monument Types
- CURVILINEAR ENCLOSURE (Unknown date)
- ENCLOSED SETTLEMENT? (Unknown date)
- STOCK ENCLOSURE? (Unknown date)
- SUB CIRCULAR ENCLOSURE (Unknown date)
- CURVILINEAR ENCLOSURE (Early Bronze Age to Late Iron Age - 2350 BC to 42 AD)
- ENCLOSED SETTLEMENT? (Early Bronze Age to Late Iron Age - 2350 BC to 42 AD)
- STOCK ENCLOSURE? (Early Bronze Age to Late Iron Age - 2350 BC to 42 AD)
- SUB CIRCULAR ENCLOSURE (Early Bronze Age to Late Iron Age - 2350 BC to 42 AD)
Associated Finds - none
Protected Status
Sources and further reading
| <S1> | Oblique Aerial Photograph: Edwards, D.A. (NLA). 1996. NHER TG 1208M-P (NLA 367/HYD9-11) 02-JUL-1996. |
| <S2> | Oblique Aerial Photograph: Edwards, D.A. (NLA). 1983. NHER TG 1208E (NLA 135/ATB3) 21-JUL-1983. |
| <S3> | Oblique Aerial Photograph: Edwards, D.A. (NLA). 1996. NHER TG 1208Q-U (NLA 363/HKT5-9) 25-JUN-1996. |
| <S4> | Monograph: Winton, H.. 1998. The cropmark evidence for prehistoric and Roman settlement in West Lincolnshire.. Lincolnshire's Archaeology from the Air. Bewley, R.H. (ed.). pp 47-68. |
| <S5> | Article in Monograph: Deegan, A.. 2007. Archaeology on the boulder clay in Northamptonshire: some results from the Northamptonshire National Mapping Programme Project.. Populating Clay Landscapes.. Mills, J. and Palmer, R.. pp 104-119. Fig 55. |
Related records - none
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