Archaeological Test Pit Excavations in Bardney, Lincolnshire in 2015 and 2016

Archaeological test pit excavations in Bardney, Lincolnshire in 2015 and 2016

Catherine Collins

2019

Access Cambridge Archaeology Department of Archaeology University of Cambridge Downing Street Cambridge CB2 3ER

01223 761519

[email protected]

http://www.access.arch.cam.ac.uk/

1 Introduction

A total of 19 1m2 archaeological test pits were excavated over a two-year period in 2015 and 2016 in the village of Bardney in central Lincolnshire, as part of the Higher Education Field Academy (HEFA), renamed in 2016 to the Independent Learning Archaeology Field School (ILAFS) and run by Access Cambridge Archaeology (ACA) out of the University of Cambridge.

Bardney is a small village in the West Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, 15km southeast of Lincoln and 24km north of Sleaford and sitting on the eastern bank of the River Witham, on the first crossing point of the river to the south of Lincoln. The village sits at 10m OD, rising slightly to the north on mainly a West Walton Foundation of mudstone and siltstone with Ampthill Clay to the east and Oxford Clays to the west. The superficial deposits are a mixture of clays and silts with some sand and gravel along the river.

The site of Bardney Abbey to the north of the present village was founded during the mid-7th century by the King of Mercia, but was believed to have been destroyed by Viking raids in the later 9th century. The settlement was recorded as ‘Bardenai’ possibly meaning the 'island of a man called Bearda' in the Domesday Book of 1086 and in the following year a new Benedictine Abbey was re-founded by Gilbert de Gaunt, which lasted until the Dissolution in 1538. The settlement today is focused around a large central crossroads of the B1190 and the B1202 as well as a number of smaller lanes.

1.1 Access Cambridge Archaeology

Access Cambridge Archaeology (ACA) (http://www.access.arch.cam.ac.uk/) is an archaeological outreach organisation based in the Department of Archaeology in the University of Cambridge, which aims to enhance economic, social and personal well-being through active engagement with archaeology. It was set up in 2004 and specialises in providing opportunities for members of the public to take part in purposeful, research- orientated archaeological investigations including excavation. Educational events and courses range in length from a few hours to a week or more and involve members of the public of all ages.

Since 2015, ACA has been managed by the Cambridge Archaeological Unit (CAU) and thus have been able to work more closely with the unit to deliver outreach programmes such as the community excavations at Peterborough Cathedral in 2016, community test pitting activities in Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The ACA and CAU collaboration has also enabled the continuation of the education outreach projects that involve work with both primary and secondary school pupils.

1.2 The Higher Education Field Academy (HEFA)

The Higher Education Field Academy (HEFA) programme aims to raise the aspirations, enthusiasm and attainment of 14-17 year-olds with regard to higher education by making a valuable contribution to current academic research at the University of Cambridge. The three- day learning-extension course has been run by Access Cambridge Archaeology (ACA) since 2005, aimed at UK students in state schools years 9, 10 and 12.

On HEFA, participants spend two days running their own small (1m2) archaeological excavation within living villages, with the aim of applying and developing a wide range of learning skills, boosting their academic confidence and giving them a taste of life and learning at university level. They make new discoveries for and about themselves, and, in the process, contribute to the university's currently occupied rural settlement (CORS) research into the development of rural communities and settlements in the past. The third day is spent in the University of Cambridge analysing the excavation results in discursive learning sessions which aim to engage and challenge participants, prepare them to produce a written analysis for assessment as well as provide an inspirational and positive experience of higher education. After the field school, learners receive detailed individual feedback on their data collection, personal, learning and thinking skills developed during the fieldwork as well as their reporting and research skills exhibited in the written assignment, which will support applications to further and higher education.

The HEFA programme was renamed the Independent Learning Archaeology Field School (ILAFS) from 2016 onwards.

2 Methodology

The two years of test pitting in Bardney was organised by ACA in conjunction with members of the Bardney Heritage Group. The excavation and records followed the Higher Education Field Academy (HEFA), instruction handbook and recording booklet.

The test pit digging takes place over two days, which begins with an initial talk explaining the aims of the excavation, the procedures used in digging and recording the test pit and the correct and safe use of equipment. Participants are then divided into teams of three or four individuals, and each team is provided with a complete set of test pit excavation equipment, copies of the instruction handbook and a record booklet to enter excavation data into.

The test pits were all 1m2 and the turf, if present, was removed in neat squares by hand. Each test pit was excavated in a series of 10cm spits or contexts, to a maximum depth of 1.2m. The horizontal surface of each context/spit was then drawn at 1:10 scale before excavation, a photograph taken and the colour of the soil recorded with reference to a standardised colour chart. A pro-forma recording system was used by participants to record their test pit excavation. This comprised a 16-page Test Pit Record booklet which was developed by ACA for use by people with no previous archaeological experience. Each pit and context is described and noted using the site code BAR/year, so BAR/15 for 2015 and BAR/16 for 2016.

During the excavation, 100% of the spoil is sieved through a 10mm mesh (with the occasional exception of very heavy clay soils which have to be hand-searched). All artefacts are retained, cleaned and bagged by context. Cut and built features are planned at 1:10 and excavated sequentially with latest deposits removed first. Pottery and most other finds are identified promptly by archaeological experts on site who visit the test pits regularly providing advice and checking that the excavation is being carried out and recorded to the required standard. Test pits are excavated down to natural or the maximum safe depth of 1.2m, whichever is encountered first. A minority of test pits will stop on encountering a feature, (ancient or modern) which archaeological staff deem inadvisable or impossible to remove, and occasionally excavation may cease at a level above natural due to time constraints. On completion of each test pit excavation, all four sections are drawn at 1:10 along with the unexcavated base of the test pit prior to backfilling by hand and the turf replaced neatly to restore the site.

After the two days of excavation are completed, the archaeological records and finds (all of which are kept and cleaned on site) are retained by ACA at the University of Cambridge for analysis, reporting, archiving and submission to HER’s, publication and ongoing research into the origins and development of rural settlement. Ownership of objects rests in the first instance with the landowner, except where other law overrides this (e.g. Treasure Act 1996, 2006, Burials Act 1857). ACA retain all finds in the short term for analysis and ideally also in the longer term in order that the excavation archives will be as complete as possible, but any requests to return finds to owners will be agreed.

3 Results from the test pitting in Bardney

The approximate locations of the 19 test pits excavated in Bardney between October 2015 and June 2016 can be seen in figure 1 below (please note that the test pits are not to scale). By year, this equates to 10 pits excavated in 2015 and nine in 2016, as part of the University of Cambridge’s HEFA/ILAFS programme.

The data from each test pit is discussed in this section and set out in numerical order and by year. Most excavation was in spits measuring 10cm in depth, but in cases when a change in the character of deposits indicated a change in context, a new spit was started before 10cm.

Figure 1: Location map of all the Bardney test pits. Green is 2015 and blue is 2016 (NB test pits not to scale) © Crown Copyright/database right 2019. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service 1: 10,000

3.1 2015 Test Pits (site code BAR/15)

The 2015 test pit excavations in Bardney were undertaken over the 21st and 22nd of October, when a total of 10 1m2 archaeological test pits were excavated by 40 Year 9, Year 10, Year 11 and Year 13 pupils from the William Farr School, Caister Yarborough Academy, Melior Community Academy, Peele Community Academy, Boston High School, South Axholme Academy, Branston Community Academy, Giles Academy, Lincoln Castle Academy, Priory LSST, Kesteven and Grantham Girls School and St Hugh’s Grantham (school names correct at time of participation). These were all excavated as part of the Higher Education Field Academy (HEFA), run by ACA in partnership with the Lincolnshire Outreach Network who funded the project with the University of Lincoln.

The excavations were directed by Carenza Lewis, with onsite supervision provided by Catherine Collins, Laure Bonner and Alex Beeby with members of the Lincoln Archaeology Group for Excavation, Education and Research. Paul Blinkhorn analysed the pottery. The test pits were mainly sited in the core of the village, although there were also a couple of outlying sites along Station Road in the west and Abbey Road in the north. The test pit sites were found by members of the Bardney Heritage Group, and in particular Pat Rennie.

Figure 2: Bardney 2015 test pit location map (NB test pits not to scale) © Crown Copyright/database right 2019. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service 1: 10,000

Test Pit one (BAR/15/1)

Test pit one was excavated in the enclosed rear garden of a modern house set in the far west of the village and close to the river (99 Station Road, Bardney. TF 11462 69127).

Test pit one was excavated to a depth of 0.4m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at this level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

The majority of the pottery excavated from BAR/15/1 dates as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares but a small amount of both medieval and post medieval pottery wares were also recorded as Lincoln Glazed Ware, Midland Purple Ware, Glazed Red Earthenware and Bourne ‘D’ Ware.

Figure 3: Location map of BAR/15/1 LGW MP GRE BD VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 1 1 4 18 1 1 1200-1900 1 2 15 38 1800-1900 1 3 3 12 1 6 7 14 1200-1900 1 4 1 18 1 5 1 3 6 10 1400-1900 Table 1: The pottery recorded from BAR/15/1

A mix of modern finds and later pottery were all recorded from BAR/15/1 that suggest quite a bit of later disturbances, particularly from the 19th century onwards, although prior to the houses being built along the main road the site was likely open fields, or incorporated into gardens. The presence of a number of medieval sherds however does suggest that there was likely activity on site from the 13th century and is the most westerly of activity of that date so far identified through the test pitting strategy. The mix of finds recorded consist of brick fragments, ceramic building material (CBM), coal, plastic wrappers, glass, cement, pieces of plastic, tile, clay pipe, animal bone, slate, a metal hoop, modern screws, a plastic plant tag, scrunched foil, mortar, iron nails, a sixpence coin dated 1958, a small metal turning handle

and slag. A thin probable copper pin was also excavated from context three (figure 4).

Figure 4: The copper pin excavated from BAR/15/1, context 3 © ACA

Test Pit two (BAR/15/2)

Test pit two was excavated in the enclosed side garden of a possible early 20th century house fronting the road in the centre of the village (28 Station Road, Bardney. TF 11836 69426).

Test pit two was excavated to a depth of 0.6m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at this level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

A wide range of pottery types were excavated from BAR/15/2, particularly dating as medieval and post medieval. These have been identified as Lincoln Glazed Ware, Potterhanworth Ware, Late Medieval Ware, Bourne ‘D’ Ware, Cistercian Ware, Midland Purple Ware, Glazed Figure 5: Location map of BAR/15/2 Red Earthenware, Midland Blackware, Delft Ware, Staffordshire Slipware, Staffordshire Manganese Ware and Iron-Glazed Earthenware. An additional 18 sherds of 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares were also identified.

A large mix of both finds and pottery were recorded from BAR/15/2, the pottery particularly suggest that there was likely continual occupation on site between the 13th and 16th centuries, potentially due to its central location in the village and proximity to the church. A change in land use seems apparent into the post medieval however, perhaps when the current property boundaries were established. This later land use has also led to a number of disturbances on site with a mix of finds recorded through the test pit, consisting of CBM, clay pipe, metal washers, iron nails, slag, coal, glass, mortar, tile, strips of metal, fragments of shell and large quantities of animal bone. A piece of worked flint was also excavated from context three that may be of a later prehistoric date, although analysis of the lithics are needed to confirm this. Very large fragments of post medieval pottery were also present which does hint that it is unlikely that they have travelled very far at all. A square metal buckle and a possible metal arrow shaft were also identified from context four (figures 6 and 7)

Figure 6: The possible metal arrow shaft excavated from BAR/15/2, context 4 © ACA

Figure 7: The corroded metal buckle excavated from BAR/15/2, context 4 © ACA

LGW POTT LMT BD CIST MP GRE MB DW SS SMW IGW VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 2 2 2 9 1 6 2 9 4 10 3 26 12 15 1200-1900 2 3 2 93 4 33 2 5 10 73 2 5 4 16 3 9 1 35 6 17 1220-1900 2 4 9 62 3 109 3 47 1 13 4 18 7 91 2 4 1 9 1200-1700 2 5 3 35 3 143 2 125 1 55 1220-1600 2 6 3 32 1 15 1200-1550 Table 2: The pottery recorded from BAR/15/2

Test Pit three (BAR/15/3)

Test pit three was excavated in the enclosed rear garden of a modern house set opposite St Lawrence Church in the centre of the village (The Vicarage, 10 Church Lane, Bardney. TF 11938 69437).

Test pit three was excavated to a depth of 1.05m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at this level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

The vast majority of the pottery excavated from BAR/15/3 dates to the 15th century and later and has been identified as Midland Purple Ware, Late Medieval Ware, Cistercian Ware, Glazed Red Earthenware, Frechen Stoneware, Midland Blackware, Staffordshire Slipware, Staffordshire Manganese Ware, Iron-Glazed Earthenware and as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares. An additional three sherds of medieval Lincoln Glazed Ware were also recorded through the test pit. Figure 8: Location map of BAR/15/3 The results from BAR/15/3 suggest that there was likely only marginal activity onsite during the medieval period, despite the location of the test pit opposite the church in the centre of the village. On site occupation was likely from the 16th century, with a slight decrease into the 19th century, perhaps due to a change in land boundaries the site was incorporated into a garden. This later activity had caused a great deal of disturbances on site as a mix of finds and later pottery were recorded through the test pit, the finds consisting of slate, coal, cement, glass, a plastic tube, CBM, tile, a curved plate of metal, slag, clay pipe, half a metal buckle, iron nails, a complete glass jar, central battery cores, fragments of brick, complete glass bottles and large amounts of animal bone. Also recovered were fragments of leather shoe sole from context 9 (figure 9) and a small carved bone knife handle from context 10 (figures 10 and 11).

Figure 9: Leather shoe sole excavated from BAR/15/3, context 9 © ACA

Figure 10: Bone carved handle excavated from BAR/15/3, context 10 (top) © ACA

Figure 11: Bone carved handle excavated from BAR/15/3, context 10 (bottom) © ACA

LGW MP LMT CIST GRE FREC MB SS SMW IGW VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 3 1 1 5 1 1 1 29 1 1 10 18 1200-1900 3 2 17 41 1800-1900 3 3 7 50 2 17 15 73 1550-1900 3 4 1 1 1 86 1 2 2 16 9 24 1450-1900 3 5 1 2 1 1 3 22 1 13 2 9 2 3 3 7 5 89 9 55 1400-1900 3 6 1 6 1 53 2 3 1200-1900 3 7 1 8 2 22 9 216 6 92 2 4 1 4 1200-1900 3 8 1 17 9 502 1400-1600 3 9 3 37 2 4 2 3 1550-1900 3 10 1 2 1 9 1550-1600 Table 3: The pottery recorded from BAR/15/3

Test Pit four (BAR/15/4)

Test pit four was excavated in the enclosed rear garden of a modern house set opposite St Lawrence Church in the centre of the village (8 Church Lane, Bardney. TF 11950 69435).

Test pit four was excavated to a depth of 0.7m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at this level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

The vast majority of the pottery excavated from BAR/15/4 dates as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares, but a range of medieval and post medieval wares were also recorded. These have been identified as Lincoln Glazed Ware, Raeren Stoneware, Late Medieval Ware, Glazed Red Earthenware, Delft Ware, Staffordshire Manganese Ware, Iron-Glazed Figure 12: Location map of BAR/15/4 Earthenware and English Stoneware.

LGW RAER LMT GRE DW SMW IGW EST VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 4 1 1 7 6 8 1550-1900 4 2 1 2 35 90 1680-1900 4 3 1 18 1 10 2 19 37 137 1200-1900 4 4 1 9 71 414 1550-1900 4 5 2 21 3 15 1 2 12 29 1550-1900 4 6 3 25 1 5 1 2 1 1 1 1 1200-1900 4 7 1 10 1 2 1 1 1200-1900 Table 4: The pottery recorded from BAR/15/4

Much like the results from BAR/15/3 the pottery and finds that were recorded from BAR/15/4 suggest that there was likely marginal activity on site during the medieval period and again despite its location in the centre of the village and opposite the church. On site occupation is evident from the 16th century onwards which also increased into the 19th century perhaps in relation to an earlier property that was on site. The disturbance is evident through the test pit with a mix of finds with the 19th century pottery; these have been identified as CBM, clay pipe, glass, coal, burnt stone, animal bone, a modern screw, a silver milk bottle top, cement, iron nails, slag, oyster shell, pieces of scrap metal, tile, plastic, mortar, iron nails and a complete glass bottle with “Bromley’s Coffee Essence – Bloomsbury Works Leeds” on the side, likely dating to the late 19th century.

Test Pit five (BAR/15/5)

Test pit five was excavated in a scrub area next to outbuildings associated with a Grade II listed 18th century manor farm set just south of the church. It was also the western of two pits excavated on the manor farmland; see also BAR/15/6 (Lindisfarne House, Manor Farm Lane, Bardney. TF 11959 69267).

Test pit five was excavated to a depth of 0.49m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints and the presence of a pipe as well as large fragments of concrete, excavations were halted at this level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled. Figure 13: Location map of BAR/15/5 Three sherds of 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares were only recorded from BAR/15/5.

VIC TP Context No Wt Date Range 5 2 1 4 1800-1900 5 4 2 4 1800-1900 Table 5: The pottery recorded from BAR/15/5

The rough area of land that the BAR/15/5 was excavated had evidently been greatly disturbed, particularly given the presence of a water pipe high up in the test pit as well as the large fragments of concrete, brick rubble and mortar that were all recovered. A wide mix of metal work and other finds were also found, suggesting that this site may have been utilised to dispose of rubbish in more recent time. The small amount of 19th century pottery also found correlates with the use of the land as part of the farm.

The mix of finds consist of CBM, tile, fragments of brick, pieces of plastic, glass, a gnome and dog china figurines, a fuse, plug part, metal hook, metal springs, metal buttons, iron nails, a metal spoon, a Yale key, a safety pin, a metal buckle, a cylindrical magnet, strips of metal, a picture hook, metal hoops, concrete, mortar, animal bone, coal, metal keys and at least six coins. One of these coins was too degraded to identify, a six pence coin dated to 1955, an undated half penny coin, a one penny coin dated 1971, a half penny coin dated to 1971 and an undated two pence coin.

Test Pit six (BAR/15/6)

Test pit six was excavated in the garden of a converted Grade II listed 18th century barn that was part of the original manor farm set just south of the church. It was also the eastern of two pits excavated on the manor farmland; see also BAR/15/5 (Lindisfarne House, Manor Farm Lane, Bardney. TF 12017 69306).

Test pit six was excavated to a depth of 0.8m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints excavations were halted at this level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

The majority of the pottery excavated from BAR/15/6 dates as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares. Single sherds of medieval Lincoln Figure 14: Location map of BAR/15/6 Glazed Ware and post medieval Glazed Red Earthenware and Midland Blackware were also recorded through the test pit.

LGW GRE MB VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 6 1 1 4 1 5 1550-1900 6 2 6 17 1800-1900 6 3 9 47 1800-1900 6 4 9 25 1800-1900 6 5 1 1 1800-1900 6 6 1 2 2 4 1550-1900 6 8 1 4 1200-1400 Table 6: The pottery recorded from BAR/15/6

The majority of the pottery and finds excavated from BAR/15/6 date to the use of the farm from the 18th century and that there has been quite a bit of disturbance before the site was turned into a garden. The finds recorded through the test pit consist of tile, CBM, iron nails, coal, pieces of tarmac, modern tile, animal bone, modern sewer drain fragments, orange twine, thin strips of lead, iron nails, scrunched foil, shell and glass. The presence of both limited medieval and post medieval wares also suggest that there was low levels of activity on site from the 13th century, although perhaps as open fields.

Test Pit seven (BAR/15/7)

Test pit seven was excavated in the enclosed rear garden of a modern end of terrace house set just east of the village centre (3 Manor Close, Bardney. TF 12161 69306).

Test pit seven was excavated to a depth of 1.2m, although natural was encountered at 1m in depth. Excavations were halted at 1.2m and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

The vast majority of the pottery excavated from BAR/15/7 dates as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares, although a th range of 15 century and later wares Figure 15: Location map of BAR/15/7 were also identified as Late Medieval Ware, Glazed Red Earthenware, Midland Blackware and Harlow-type Slipware. A single sherd of medieval Lincoln Glazed Ware was also recorded towards the base of the test pit.

LGW LMT GRE MB HSW VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 7 1 4 83 1800-1900 7 2 15 92 1800-1900 7 3 21 40 1800-1900 7 4 1 34 1 7 1 1 1 7 10 28 1400-1900 7 5 2 15 1 12 4 1 1400-1900 7 6 1 5 1200-1400 Table 7: The pottery recorded from BAR/15/7

A large amount of both 19th century and later pottery and finds that were recorded from BAR/15/7 suggest an increase of occupation from that time, and particular on site disturbance from when the current houses were built in the later 20th century, as a lot of builders’ rubble was deposited to a depth of 0.6m. The rest of the finds consist of coal, glass, a plastic wrapper, plastic toy wheels, CBM, clay pipe, cement/mortar, animal bone, scrunched foil, iron nails, slate, sewer drain fragments, pieces of scrap metal, iron bolts, a central battery core and a white plastic toy car bonnet. The small amounts of both medieval and post medieval pottery that were also recorded point to low levels of activity from the 13th century, most likely as open fields on the edge of the village.

Test Pit eight (BAR/15/8)

Test pit eight was excavated in the enclosed rear garden of a modern house that was once the old school yard to the Primary School immediately to the south (4 Queen Street, Bardney. TF 12262 69562).

Test pit eight was excavated to a depth of 1.2m, although natural was encountered at 0.7m in depth. Excavations were halted at 1.2m and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

A small amount of both medieval and post medieval wares were excavated from BAR/15/8 that Figure 16: Location map of BAR/15/8 were also mixed through the test pit. These were identified as Potterhanworth Ware, Late Medieval Ware, Glazed Red Earthenware, Midland Blackware and as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares.

POTT LMT GRE MB VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 8 2 1 1 1800-1900 8 3 2 69 2 4 1550-1900 8 4 1 4 1 2 1220-1550 8 11 5 229 1 4 1550-1600 Table 8: The pottery recorded from BAR/15/8

The general small amount of both finds and pottery that were recorded from BAR/15/8 suggest that the site has potentially always had limited activity away from the core of the village from the 13th century until the school house was built in the 19th century. The construction of the modern house has led to some disturbance on site, but these were generally confined to the upper two contexts of the test pit only. The finds also recorded consist of a modern nail, coal, mortar, CBM, clay pipe, tile and animal bone, much of which may have been utilised for manuring of the fields. Two small possible degraded metal or glass objects were also found from context seven (figure 17).

Figure 17: The possible glass or metal fragments excavated from BAR/15/8, context 7 © ACA

Test Pit nine (BAR/15/9)

Test pit nine was excavated in a grass field immediately south of a modern house set just north of the village centre of the road north to Bardney Abbey (Field south of 23 Abbey Road, Bardney. TF 11819 69579).

Test pit nine was excavated to a depth of 0.69m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints and the presence of a field drain at that depth, excavations were halted at 1.2m and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

The vast majority of the pottery excavated from BAR/15/9 dates as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares and were found mixed through the test pit. A range of medieval and post medieval Figure 18: Location map of BAR/15/9 wares were however also recorded as Lincoln Glazed Ware, Late Medieval Ware, Midland Purple Ware, Glazed Red Earthenware, Staffordshire Slipware, Staffordshire Manganese Ware and Iron-Glazed Earthenware.

LGW LMT MP GRE SS SMW IGW VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 9 1 1 9 1 1 1550-1900 9 2 1 3 1 1 9 8 1400-1900 9 3 1 6 34 57 1400-1900 9 4 1 1 1 1 25 39 1650-1900 9 5 1 5 1 7 2 7 2 9 21 118 1200-1900 9 6 15 80 1800-1900 9 7 2 8 1 4 2 15 10 45 1550-1900 Table 9: The pottery recorded from BAR/15/9

A wide mix of 19th century and later finds and pottery were recorded from BAR/15/9 that are most likely from an earlier cottage that was sited fronting Abbey Road, the land would presumably incorporated the current field and site of BAR/15/9. The mix of finds with the Victorian pottery were also greatly disturbed due to the presence of a field drain that was identified at the base of the test pit and consist of a modern nail, asbestos, CBM, slag, coal, glass, mortar, clay pipe, metal bolts, slate, oyster and snail shell, animal bone, iron nails, a metal button, cement, tile and burnt stone with pieces of worked flint. These may be of a later prehistoric date, although analysis of the lithics are needed to confirm this. The additional 17 sherds of medieval and post medieval pottery that were also recorded suggest there was also activity on site from the 13th century onwards, although it may have been marginal to the core of the village to the south.

Test Pit 10 (BAR/15/10)

Test pit 10 was excavated in a grass field on the northern side of the gravel driveway and opposite a modern house set in the far north of the village (100 Abbey Road, Bardney. TF 11689 70152).

Test pit 10 was excavated to a depth of 0.5m at which natural was found. Excavations were halted at 1.2m and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

All the pottery excavated from BAR/15/10 dates as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares.

VIC TP Context No Wt Date Range 10 2 11 73 1800-1900 10 3 64 211 1800-1900 10 5 8 99 1800-1900 Table 10: The pottery recorded from BAR/15/10

The finds and pottery that were excavated Figure 19: Location map of BAR/15/10 from BAR/15/10 suggest that there was little in the way of activity until 19th century when occupation in the village may have expanded further north and north of the railway line. There has also likely been a range of disturbances evident on site as a mix of modern finds were also mixed through the test pit, likely relating to the current house. The finds recorded consist of tile, CBM, concrete, tarmac, slag, coal, glass, iron nails, animal bone, slate, a folded thin sheet of metal, a thick metal bar, Perspex, modern drain fragments and modern CBM fragments.

3.2 2016 Test Pits (site code BAR/16)

The second and final year of test pit excavations in Bardney were undertaken over the 28th and 29th of June, when a total of nine 1m2 archaeological test pits were excavated by 35 Year 9, Year 10 and Year 12 pupils from the Charles Read Academy, King Edward VI School, The West Grantham Academy, Ormiston Maritime Academy, The Priory Academy in Lincoln and The Peele Community College (school names correct at time of participation). These were all excavated as part of the These were all excavated as part of the Independent Learning Archaeology Field School (ILAFS), formally known as the Higher Education Field Academy (HEFA), run by ACA in partnership with the Lincolnshire Outreach Network who funded the project with the University of Lincoln.

The excavations were directed by Carenza Lewis, with onsite supervision provided by Catherine Collins and Jessica Rippengal, with Alex Beeby and members of the Lincoln Archaeology Group for Excavation, Education and Research. Paul Blinkhorn analysed the pottery. The test pits were sited in-between the 2015 test pit locations in the core of the village, but also focused at more outlying sites to the north of the village and closer to the abbey and brought the total excavated in the village to 19. The test pit sites were found by members of the Bardney Heritage Group, and in particular Pat Rennie.

Figure 20: Bardney 2016 test pit location map (NB test pits not to scale) © Crown Copyright/database right 2019. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service 1: 10,000

Test Pit one (BAR/16/1)

Test pit one was excavated in the enclosed rear garden of a modern house set in the far south of the village (15 St Lawrence Drive, Bardney. TF 12115 69204).

Test pit one was excavated to a depth of 0.5m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at this depth and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

A single sherd of later 17th century Staffordshire Slipware was recorded from context three of BAR/16/1.

SS TP Context No Wt Date Range 1 3 1 10 1650-1700 Figure 21: Location map of BAR/16/1 Table 11: The pottery excavated from BAR/16/1

The position of BAR/16/1 and the excavation results suggest that the site has always been outside the core of the village activity in Bardney and was sporadically utilised as open fields, the only date for which has been identified was during the later 17th century. The few finds also recorded are likely related to both manuring of the site and from the construction of the modern housing estate, and consist of CBM fragments, bottle glass, slag, coal, cement and a possible small metal valve part.

Test Pit two (BAR/16/2)

Test pit two was excavated in the enclosed front garden of a modern house set across the road from the church to the northeast (6 Church Lane, Bardney. TF 11980 69425).

Test pit two was excavated to a depth of c.0.9m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at this level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

A range of pottery was excavated from BAR/16/2, all of which dates from the 15th century and later and has been identified as Late Medieval Ware, Frechen Stoneware, Midland Blackware, Staffordshire Slipware and Iron-Glazed Figure 22: Location map of BAR/16/2 Earthenware. By far the majority of the pottery found dated as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares.

LMT FREC MB SS IGW VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 2 1 1 2 1 5 2 11 1400-1900 2 2 9 21 1800-1900 2 3 1 2 52 400 1650-1900 2 4 27 408 1800-1900 2 5 1 4 1 7 51 1173 1550-1900 Table 12: The pottery excavated from BAR/16/2

A vast majority of 19th century and later finds were excavated from BAR/16/2, most likely relating from the use of the property as part of gardens and properties backing onto Station Road, until it was subdivided and the current houses were then built. It is from this time that the majority of the finds also likely date, consisting of CBM, tile, clay pipe, glass, a metal button, iron nails, a cutler handle, slag, a small turning lever, a wheel or cog, a metal bracket, metal wire and pieces of scrap metal with coal, slate, cement, mortar, pieces of plastic fragments and wrappers, slate pencils, polystyrene and tarmac. Also found were cockle shell and animal bone and a small number of later and post medieval pottery wares that suggest even though the test pit is located almost opposite the church, there was little in the way of occupation and the land may have been left open.

Test Pit three (BAR/16/3)

Test pit three was excavated in the enclosed rear garden of a modern house fronting the main road into the village from the west (39 Station Road, Bardney. TF 11822 69357).

Test pit three was excavated to a depth of 0.5m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at this level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

All the pottery excavated from BAR/16/3 dates from the 15th century onwards with small amounts of Late Medieval Ware, Midland Blackware and Iron-Glazed Earthenware all recorded. The majority of the pottery identified from the test pit though was dated as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares.

Figure 23: Location map of BAR/16/3

LMT MB IGW VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 3 1 1 1 20 131 1400-1900 3 2 23 53 1800-1900 3 3 2 28 23 99 1700-1900 3 4 1 24 24 73 1550-1900 Table 13: The pottery excavated from BAR/16/3

This land may have been incorporated into nearby gardens from the 19th century, given the large amount of pottery and finds that were excavated to date from that time and may have only been sold off to build the current house. Prior to the 19th century, it is possible that this site may have been marginal to the extent of medieval and post medieval Bardney, given the limited pottery recorded and utilised as open fields. A large mix of finds were excavated through the test pit, also suggesting that there has been a degree of disturbance on site, and consist of CBM, clay pipe, tile, glass, iron nails and screws, a washer, pieces of scrap metal, a very degraded coin or token, coal, slate, concrete, mortar, roof lining and a small rubber top with cockle and oyster shell and animal bone, including the remains of a small mammal that was mainly excavated from context five.

Test Pit four (BAR/16/4)

Test pit four was excavated in the extended side garden to the east of a likely 16th century building, now a public house and along the main road out of the village to the north east. It was also one of two pits excavated here; see also BAR/16/5 (The Black Horse Pub, 16 Wragby Road, Bardney. TF 12139 69607).

Test pit four was excavated to a depth of 0.6m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at this level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

The majority of the pottery excavated from BAR/16/4 dates to the mid-16th century and later as Glazed Red Earthenware, Manganese Ware and Iron-Glazed Earthenware with a large number of sherds in particular dating as Figure 24: Location map of BAR/16/4 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares. A single sherd of Late Anglo-Saxon Stamford Ware was also recorded from context five.

STAM GRE SMW IGW VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 4 1 1 16 12 20 1700-1900 4 2 2 12 55 122 1550-1900 4 3 1 1 36 87 1700-1900 4 4 47 127 1800-1900 4 5 1 1 1 10 3 6 1000-1900 Table 14: The pottery excavated from BAR/16/4

Both test pits excavated here yielded different results, but had the majority of the finds and pottery dating from the 19th century and later, when there also seems to have been quite a bit of disturbance on site. The presence of pottery dating from the 16th century and later also supports the notion of the pubs origins from that time, as mentioned in the listing; prior to which there was very little of any activity on site, apart from briefly during the Late Anglo Saxon period as one of only two sites so far identified through the test pitting strategy to yield pottery of that date. The mix of finds also recorded through the test pit consist of CBM, clay pipe, tile, brick fragments, glass including the base of a tube, iron nails, slag, a metal strip and a metal loop with coal, slate, cement, Bakelite, central battery cores, plastic wrappers, Perspex and rubber. A few small pieces of shell were also found with animal bone and fragments of burnt bone, the latter of which may be of a later prehistoric date, although analysis of the lithics are needed to confirm this.

Test Pit five (BAR/16/5)

Test pit five was excavated in the enclosed rear garden to the north of a likely 16th century building, now a public house and along the main road out of the village to the north east. It was also the northern of two pits excavated here; see also BAR/16/4 (The Black Horse Pub, 16 Wragby Road, Bardney. TF 12114 69622).

Test pit five was excavated to a depth of 0.6m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at this level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

A range of both medieval and post medieval pottery types were excavated from BAR/16/5 and have been identified as Potterhanworth Ware, Midland Purple Ware, Frechen Stoneware, Midland Blackware and Manganese Ware. The majority of the pottery identified however dates as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares.

Figure 25: Location map of BAR/16/5

POTT MP FREC MB SMW VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 5 1 1 1 22 46 1400-1900 5 2 1 4 1 2 40 68 1550-1900 5 4 1 27 2 3 10 32 1550-1900 5 5 3 63 1 3 1250-1900 5 6 1 20 1250-1400 Table 15: The pottery excavated from BAR/16/5

The position of BAR/16/5 along the main road may be why a number of medieval sherds of pottery were found here and not at BAR/16/4. Further evidence for occupation was also noted through the post medieval, again supporting the notion that the pub may have 16th century origins as mentioned it the building listing. The peak of activity and disturbance on site was again during the 19th century and a mix of finds were again recorded through the test pit, consisting of CBM, clay pipe, tile, brick fragments, glass, iron nails, strips of metal, slag, coal, slate, plastic wrapping, central battery cores, mortar, strips of plastic, animal bone and cockle shell. The presence of both burnt stone and worked flint may date as later prehistoric, although analysis of the lithics are needed to confirm this.

Test Pit six (BAR/16/6)

Test pit six was excavated in the enclosed front garden of a modern house set in the north of the village off the road leading up the Abbey (16 Carron Close, Bardney. TF 11911 69767).

Test pit six was excavated to a depth of 0.5m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at this level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

A total of 36 sherds of 19th century ‘Victorian’ pot were only excavated from the upper three contexts of BAR/16/6.

VIC TP Context No Wt Date Range Figure 26: Location map of BAR/16/6 6 1 2 8 1800-1900 6 2 3 25 1800-1900 6 3 31 49 1800-1900 Table 16: The pottery excavated from BAR/16/6

There was little activity on site until the 19th century, perhaps relating to the enclosure of the fields to the north of Bardney or a change of land use. A number of the finds also date to the construction of the modern housing estate during the 20th century; the finds found consist of CBM, clay pipe, modern CBM, glass including a complete Bovril jar, iron nails, a metal rod, slag, coal and mortar.

Test Pit seven (BAR/16/7)

Test pit seven was excavated in the enclosed rear garden of a 19th century former Station House set along Abbey Road in the far north of the village (90 Abbey Road, Bardney. TF 11765 70047).

Test pit seven was excavated to a depth of 0.6m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at his level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

The vast majority of the pottery excavated from BAR/16/7 dates as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares although a single sherd of medieval Lincoln Glazed Ware and two sherds of post medieval Glazed Red Earthenware were also recorded. Figure 27: Location map of BAR/16/7

LGW GRE VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 7 1 2 14 1800-1900 7 2 1 5 1100-1400 7 3 4 8 1800-1900 7 4 1 2 1800-1900 7 5 2 19 10 182 1550-1900 7 6 12 160 1800-1900 Table 17: The pottery excavated from BAR/16/7

Unsurprisingly the majority of the pottery and finds that were excavated from BAR/16/7 date to the 19th century with the construction of the station house and railway that went through the garden, but it seems that when the railway line was removed little railway debris remains in the garden. The finds excavated consist of CBM, tile, glass, iron nails and bolts, a metal spoon, slag and a red and silver milk bottle top with a number of pieces of coal, plant tags, melted plastic, polystyrene, cockle shell and animal bone. A single large piece of burnt stone was also found from context two that may be of a later prehistoric date, although analysis of the lithics are needed to confirm this. Prior to the 19th century there was little in the way of activity on site and the land was likely open fields north of the town from the medieval period onwards.

Test Pit eight (BAR/16/8)

Test pit eight was excavated on grassland to the rear of the modern properties fronting Abbey Road in the far north of the village and was set between old sheds and greenhouses (94 Abbey Road, Bardney. TF 11754 70114).

Test pit eight was excavated to a depth of c.0.7m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at this level and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

Single sherds of both Roman pottery and Late Anglo-Saxon Stamford Ware were both recorded from context five of Figure 28: Location map of BAR/16/8 BAR/16/8, with two sherds of medieval Lincoln Glazed Ware.

RB STAM LGW TP Context No Wt No Wt No Wt Date Range 8 2 2 8 1100-1400 8 5 1 1 1 3 100-1250 Table 18: The pottery excavated from BAR/16/8

BAR/16/8 is the only site so far identified through the test pitting strategy in Bardney to reveal Roman activity and the single sherd may actually suggest this site was fields at that time rather than occupation. The Late Anglo Saxon and high medieval activity that was also recorded from test pit eight may be contemporary with Bardney Abbey site that is situated just to the north and this site may have been on or close to a farmstead site between the village and the abbey. The few finds also excavated suggest that from the 15th century this land has generally been left as open fields as it still is today, the fragments of CBM found perhaps used as manuring. Also found was a corroded metal lump and a piece of coal with a possible burnt stone that may indicate the presence of later prehistoric activity on site, although additional analysis on the lithics would be needed to confirm this.

Test Pit nine (BAR/16/9)

Test pit nine was excavated on a small patch of grass and young trees behind the garage to the north of the original farmhouse, but also just south of Bardney Abbey (Abbey Cottage, Abbey Road, Bardney. TF 11448 70409).

Test pit nine was excavated to a depth of c.0.45m. Natural was not found, but due to time constraints, excavations were halted at this depth and the test pit was recorded and backfilled.

A single sherd of Late Medieval Ware pottery was excavated from BAR/16/9 with two sherds identified as 19th century ‘Victorian’ wares.

Figure 29: Location map of BAR/16/9

LMT VIC TP Context No Wt No Wt Date Range 9 3 2 6 1800-1900 9 4 1 8 1400-1550 Table 19: The pottery excavated from BAR/16/9

The sherd of later medieval pottery that was excavated from BAR/16/9 may to activity around the abbey site at that time, including also perhaps the origins of Abbey Farm itself, although further excavation would be needed on site to confirm that. The farm was in use for sure by the 19th century, for which there was also evidence for in the test pit, but the majority of the finds are more recent in date, potentially relating to the amount of modernising the property has seen and changes in land use around the farm yard. The finds consist of fragments of brick, CBM, tile, clay pipe, glass, iron nails, pieces of scrap metal, a large rounded piece of building stone (could this have come from the abbey?), mortar, cement, plastic and a number of pieces of animal bone from context four.

4 Conclusions

The 19 archaeological test pits that were excavated in Bardney in 2015 and 2016 have yielded archaeological evidence for settlement in the parish dating from the Roman period through to the modern day. All the test pit results have also added to the ‘bigger picture’ of the development of Bardney, as well as providing new insight into the level of archaeological remains that are still present under the current village.

Evidence for prehistoric activity was limited to a small amount of lithic material, either in the form of worked flints, burnt stone or both and although at the time of writing, these remain undated, they are likely to be of a later prehistoric date, either Neolithic or Bronze Age. These lithics were identified from seven of the 19 test pits and most of which were sited within the core of Bardney village (BAR/15/2, BAR/15/4, BAR/15/9, BAR/16/4 and BAR/16/7) from which there has previously been very little evidence for prehistoric activity found and recorded on the Lincolnshire Historic Environment Record (LHER). The two test pits excavated along Abbey Road (BAR/16/7 and BAR/16/8) also both produced lithic material and it is from this area towards Abbey Farm and the site of Bardney Abbey where previous Neolithic and Bronze Age lithics and pottery have been found (LHER No.51159 and 51140) along with evidence of round barrows (LHER No. 53840 and 53842). A lot of the settlement evidence in the parish has derived from closer to the River Witham, including a causeway route across the Branston fens (LHER No. 62553) and three Bronze Age log boats have also been found along the river (LHER No. 51162, 51154 and 51142), which does hint that there may have been quite extensive settlement in this area, which for the first time was found to extend under Bardney village.

The earliest pottery excavated from the test pitting dated as Romano-British, with a single small sherd found from BAR/16/8, sited along the eastern side of Abbey Road. Additional Romano-British material have been found at the site of Bardney Abbey and further along Abbey Road (LHER No. 51138, 56528 and 52594), so the sherd here may be contemporary with this other material and suggestive of a possible farmstead in this area although this pottery was likely the result of agricultural activities such as manuring.

No Early or Middle Anglo-Saxon material was found from any of the test pits, and only two of the sites produced Late Anglo-Saxon pottery; BAR/16/4 and BAR/16/8, yielding just one sherd of Stamford Ware each. Settlement is known from Bardney from the 7th century (Early to Mid- Saxon period), when Bardney Abbey was first founded by Ethelred of Mercia and his wife Osthryd (LHER No. 54217 and 51139). It may have been its destruction during Viking raids in the later 9th century that could have led to a definite area of settlement at Bardney developing away from the abbey site by the Late Anglo-Saxon period, which by the time of the Norman Conquest was large enough to be included in the Domesday Survey of 1086. The limited Anglo-Saxon material deriving from the test pitting, however, likely relates to agricultural activities such as manuring in the fields surrounding the Anglo-Saxon settlement.

It was likely the re-founding of the abbey in c.1087 by Gilbert de Gant, originally as a Benedictine priory that was raised to the rank of abbey in 1115 that added to the development of the medieval settlement at Bardney (LHER 51176). This would have probably been based around the small surviving area of open triangular land at Abbey Road, Queen Street and Horncastle Road that may also have been the location of the medieval market, instituted by the abbey by 1232. Eight of the test pits excavated around this area produced high medieval pottery, several with multiple sherds, suggestive of occupation on site, with three of these test pits to the south of the church and Silver Street (BAR/15/6, BAR/15/7 and BAR/15/8) yielding just single sherds each, which hint that this area may have been open fields during the medieval period, just outside the village core. An area of outlying settlement was noted at BAR/15/1 at the River Witham end of Station Road, perhaps as a farmstead and additional 34

possible settlement evidence was also recorded along Abbey Road (BAR/16/7 and BAR/16/8), about halfway between the medieval settlement and the abbey.

There was perhaps a shift in the settlement into the 14th century, likely related to the various socio-economic upheavals of the 14th century, including the Black Death and nine test pits in the centre of Bardney produced pottery of a later medieval date. The shift in settlement may have seen a focus of activity further to the west; west of both Abbey Road and Horncastle Road and west of the market area. Single sherds of later medieval pottery were found again from the southern test pits but also the test pits to the east (BAR/15/7, BAR/158 and BAR/16/5) suggesting the land utilized as fields in the high medieval, may have changed into the late medieval. A shift was also noted from the high medieval activity on Abbey Road, further to the north at Abbey Farm (BAR/16/9), which may have developed at this time, whilst the area around BAR/16/7 and BAR/16/8 was abandoned. The additional area of high medieval settlement at the river end of Station Road (BAR/15/1), was found to continue through the later medieval, but would have likely still been an isolated area, away from the main area of settlement.

Bardney recovered during the post medieval, although it still likely remained a small rural village. Twelve of the central test pits produced pottery of this date and hints at how the settlement expanded at the end of the medieval period, and into the land that may have been previously utilised as fields, such as to the south of the church and Silver Street and to the east of Queen Street. It is possible that the settlement at this time began to expand west along Station Road to the site of BAR/15/1, although no test pits were able to be excavated in this gap, so is just conjecture at this stage. Settlement was also noted again at BAR/16/7 along Abbey Road, although this may have been part of or nearby to an isolated farmstead.

All but two of the test pits (BAR/16/1 and BAR/16/8) found 19th century and later material, hinting that it continued to expand through the 18th and 19th century to warrant a station in the village when the railway was constructed in the later 19th century. The railway crossed Abbey Road, between the abbey and the village, and the station was situated at BAR/16/7 and the settlement began to take the shape that can be seen today. There is some modern 20th century infilling, but the majority of the newer developments have continued to expand the settlement, especially out to the east and south.

5 Maps

Much of the value of the test pit data from currently occupied rural settlements are derived from a holistic consideration across the entire settlement. Maps showing a range of the data from the test pit excavations in Bardney in 2015 and 2016 are included below.