199-207 Henley Road Caversham Berkshire
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199-207 Henley Road Caversham Berkshire Archaeological Evaluation for RPS Consulting Services CA Project: AN0118 CA Report: AN0118_1 May 2020 199-207 Henley Road Caversham Berkshire Archaeological Evaluation CA Project: AN0118 CA Report: AN0118_1 Document Control Grid Revision Date Author Checked by Status Reasons for Approved revision by A 22/5/20 AH Oliver Good Internal General Edit Richard review Greatorex This report is confidential to the client. Cotswold Archaeology accepts no responsibility or liability to any third party to whom this report, or any part of it, is made known. Any such party relies upon this report entirely at their own risk. No part of this report may be reproduced by any means without permission. Cirencester Milton Keynes Andover Exeter Suffolk Building 11 Unit 8, The IO Centre Stanley House Unit 1, Clyst Units Unit 5, Plot 11 Kemble Enterprise Park Fingle Drive Walworth Road Cofton Road Maitland Road Cirencester Stonebridge Andover Marsh Barton Lion Barn Industrial Gloucestershire Milton Keynes Hampshire Exeter Estate GL7 6BQ Buckinghamshire SP10 5LH EX2 8QW Needham Market MK13 0AT Suffolk IP6 8NZ t. 01285 771 022 t. 01264 347 630 t. 01392 573 970 t. 01908 564 660 t. 01449 900 120 e. [email protected] CONTENTS SUMMARY ............................................................................................................................... 3 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................ 1 2. ARCHAEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND ....................................................................... 2 3. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES .......................................................................................... 6 4. METHODOLOGY ....................................................................................................... 7 5. RESULTS .................................................................................................................. 8 6. THE FINDS ................................................................................................................ 9 7. DISCUSSION ............................................................................................................. 9 8. CA PROJECT TEAM ................................................................................................. 9 9. REFERENCES........................................................................................................... 10 APPENDIX A: CONTEXT DESCRIPTIONS ............................................................................ 11 APPENDIX B: THE FINDS ...................................................................................................... 13 APPENDIX C: OASIS REPORT FORM ................................................................................... 14 1 199-207 Henley Road, Caversham, Berkshire: Written Scheme of Investigation for an Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figure 1 Site location plan (1:25,000) Figure 2 Trench location plan (1:500) Figure 3 Trench photographs Figure 4 Trench section photographs 2 199-207 Henley Road, Caversham, Berkshire: Written Scheme of Investigation for an Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology SUMMARY Project name: 199-207 Henley Road Location: Caversham, Berkshire NGR: 473017 175198 Type: Evaluation Date: 4-6 May 2020 Planning reference: 180418 Location of Archive: To be deposited with Reading Museum and the Archaeology Data Service (ADS) Site Code: HNLY20 In May 2020, Cotswold Archaeology carried out an archaeological evaluation at 199-207 Henley Road, Caversham, Berkshire. A total of 7 trenches were excavated. No archaeological features, deposits or finds were observed within any of the trenches. 3 199-207 Henley Road, Caversham, Berkshire: Written Scheme of Investigation for an Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology © Cotswold Archaeology 199-207 Henley Road, Caversham, Berkshire: Written Scheme of Investigation for an Archaeological Evaluation 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1. In May 2020, Cotswold Archaeology (CA) carried out an archaeological evaluation (of land) at 199-207 Henley Road, Caversham, Berkshire (centred at NGR: 473017 175198; Fig. 1). This evaluation was undertaken for RPS Consulting Services Limited. 1.2. The evaluation results will inform a planning application for residential development on the site, which has been made to Reading Borough Council (ref: 180418). 1.3. The scope of this evaluation was defined by Roland Smith (Berkshire County Archaeologist), the archaeological advisor to RBC. The evaluation was carried out in accordance with a Written Scheme of Investigation (WSI) prepared by CA (2019) and approved by Roland Smith. 1.4. The evaluation was also undertaken in line with Standard and guidance for archaeological field evaluation (CIfA 2014), Management of Research Projects in the Historic Environment (MoRPHE) PPN 3: Archaeological Excavation (Historic England 2015) and Management of Research Projects in the Historic Environment: The MoRPHE Project Managers' Guide (Historic England 2015). The site 1.5. The proposed development area is approximately 1.08ha and comprises the brownfield site of 199-203 Henley Road residential buildings and their associated garden space with part of the garden space from residential properties 205-207 included in the site area. It is bounded by Henley Road to the north and Berry Brook to the south. To the east and west of the site are residential properties. The study site slopes from North to South from 46m above Ordnance Datum (aOD) to c. 36m (aOD). 1.6. The results of a ground investigation (Carter 2018) revealed a ground profile comprising Topsoil up to 0.40mbgl; overlying cohesive Head deposits up to 2.80mbgl; overlying undifferentiated deposits of the Seaford Chalk Formation and Newhaven Chalk Formation to the base of the borehole at 20mbgl. 1 © Cotswold Archaeology 199-207 Henley Road, Caversham, Berkshire: Written Scheme of Investigation for an Archaeological Evaluation 2. ARCHAEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND 2.1 The archaeological background is drawn from the CgMs (2019) desk-based assessment which focused on a 1.25km radius of the site. Prehistoric (500,000 BC – AD43) 2.2 Palaeolithic tools are associated with an ancient channel of the Thames running northeast through the central area of Caversham parish (Wymer 1999) and a number of undated palaeo-channels have been found as close as 200m to the site. 2.3 Adjacent to the site a Lower Palaeolithic pointed an Acheulian hand axe was found. However, this has a general location reference, and therefore should be noted to be in the general area. 2.4 A Mesolithic grove was found approximately 1,100m southwest of the site. 2.5 A Neolithic knife and flakes are recorded from 22 Grosvenor Road approximately 1km northwest of the study site, and Neolithic axe fragment is recorded approximately 1km west of the site. 2.6 To the immediate west of the site, an evaluation on land rear 98-102 Lower Henley Road and 177-197 Henley Road, Caversham revealed several undiagnostic flint flakes and twelve sherds of Late Bronze Age pottery. A post-medieval pit also contained one residual sherd of grog tempered pottery of Late Iron Age/early Roman date. 2.7 Approximately 700m west of the study site, the base of an Iron Age colander pot was found to the east of Bar Close Avenue. 2.8 A Late Iron Age and early Roman pottery assemblage is recorded from Caversham Hill approximately 1.1km northwest of the site, and a further pottery assemblage is recorded from ‘Suttons Pit’ quarry on the periphery of the study area. 2.9 The study site was thought to have a low to moderate archaeological potential for the Palaeolithic Period and is considered to have a moderate potential for the later Prehistoric periods. 2 © Cotswold Archaeology 199-207 Henley Road, Caversham, Berkshire: Written Scheme of Investigation for an Archaeological Evaluation Roman (AD43 – AD 410) 2.10 Roman finds have been widespread, including numerous coins and pieces of pottery. As such an assemblage of Late Roman coins (House of Constantine), is recorded from Caversham Hill approximately 1.1km northwest of the site; In 1924, approximately 400m northwest of the site, a first-century cremation group was discovered at the Henley Road cemetery, and almost entire pots recovered from nearby All Hallows Road. Approximately 400m south of the site, four sherds of Roman pottery were recovered; 750m west of the study site, Romano-British pottery was recovered from Henley Road; a Follis of Constantine I was found in the garden of a house on Briants Avenue approximately 750m southwest of the site; a large piece of Roman mosaic was found in spoil during road works at the Marina approximately 750m east of the site; a Roman open lamp tray was found in the River Thames at Reading, approximately 1km southwest of the site; a third-fourth century Roman spoon was found at South View Avenue, approximately 1km west of the site and finally, approximately 1km to the south of the site, a Roman occupation site, close to Dean’s Farm is indicated by two timber-lined wells, one containing fourth century pottery and possibly ritually deposited objects (Booth et al, 2007). 2.11 The study site was thought to have a moderate archaeological potential for the Roman period. Saxon and Early Medieval (AD 410 - 1066) 2.12 Evidence of Saxon activity is limited in the immediate vicinity of the site, though much has been found in Reading. The place name Caversham (meaning ‘Cāfhere’s homestead