Exploring Medieval Longhouses in the Duddon Valley, Cumbria: Final Report
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` Exploring Medieval Longhouses in the Duddon Valley, Cumbria: Final Report June 2019 Client: Duddon Valley Local History Group Issue No: 2018‐9/1951 NGRs: 32426 49758; 32429 49784; 32454 49738 ©Oxford Archaeology Ltd i 2 July 2019 Exploring Medieval Longhouses in the Duddon Valley, Cumbria: Final Report Client Name: Duddon Valley local History Group Document Title: Exploring Medieval Longhouses in the Duddon Valley, Cumbria: Final Report Document Type: Final Report Report No.: 2018‐9/1951 Grid Reference: 32426 49758; 32429 49784; 32454 49738 Site Code: THA16; LHC17; THB18 Invoice Code: L10953 OA Document File Location: Jamie/projects/10953/report OA Graphics File Location: Jamie/projects/10953/cad Issue No: Final Date: June 2019 Prepared by: Jeremy Bradley (Project Officer) Checked by: Jamie Quartermaine (Senior Project Manager) Edited by: Rachel Newman (Executive Officer Publication) Signature: …………………………………………………………….. Disclaimer: This document has been prepared for the titled project or named part thereof and should not be relied upon or used for any other project without an independent check being carried out as to its suitability and prior written authority of Oxford Archaeology being obtained. Oxford Archaeology accepts no responsibility or liability for the consequences of this document being used for a purpose other than the purposes for which it was commissioned. Any person/party using or relying on the document for such other purposes agrees and will by such use or reliance be taken to confirm their agreement to indemnify Oxford Archaeology for all loss or damage resulting therefrom. Oxford Archaeology accepts no responsibility or liability for this document to any party other than the person/party by whom it was commissioned. OA South OA East OA North Janus House 15 Trafalgar Way Mill 3 Osney Mead Bar Hill Moor Lane Mills Oxford Cambridge Moor Lane OX2 0ES CB23 8SG Lancaster LA1 1QD t. +44 (0)1865 263 800 t. +44 (0)1223 850 500 t. +44 (0)1524 541 000 e. [email protected] w. oxfordarchaeology.com Oxford Archaeology is a registered Charity: No. 285627 ©Oxford Archaeology Ltd iii 2 July 2019 Exploring Medieval Longhouses in the Duddon Valley, Cumbria: Final Report Exploring Medieval Longhouses in the Duddon Valley, Cumbria: Final Report Written by Jeremy Bradley and Jamie Quartermaine With contributions from Mike Birtles, Dot Boughton, Antony Dickson, Denise Druce, Mairead Rutherford, Peter Schofield and Adam Tinsley; illustrations by Anne Stewardson and Mark Tidmarsh Contents Summary .................................................................................................................................................................... ix Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................................................... xi 1 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Scope of Work ................................................................................................................................................. 1 1.2 Location, Topography and Geology ................................................................................................................. 1 1.3 Archaeological and Historical Background ...................................................................................................... 1 1.4 SITE HISTORY ................................................................................................................................................... 3 2 PROJECT AIMS AND METHODOLOGY ...................................................................... 7 2.1 Project Design .................................................................................................................................................. 7 2.2 Aims and Objectives ........................................................................................................................................ 7 2.3 Methodology ................................................................................................................................................... 8 3 TOPOGRAPHICAL SURVEY RESULTS ...................................................................... 15 3.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 15 3.2 Tongue House A ............................................................................................................................................. 15 3.3 Tongue House B ............................................................................................................................................. 16 3.4 The Tongue House Field System .................................................................................................................... 17 3.5 Long House Close .......................................................................................................................................... 18 4 GEOPHYSICAL SURVEY RESULTS ............................................................................ 24 4.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 24 4.2 Magnetometry ............................................................................................................................................... 24 4.3 Resistivity ....................................................................................................................................................... 24 4.4 Discussion ...................................................................................................................................................... 25 5 EXCAVATION RESULTS .......................................................................................... 26 5.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 26 5.2 General soils and ground conditions ............................................................................................................. 26 ©Oxford Archaeology Ltd iv 2 July 2019 Exploring Medieval Longhouses in the Duddon Valley, Cumbria: Final Report 5.3 Tongue House A ............................................................................................................................................. 26 5.4 Tongue House B ............................................................................................................................................. 33 5.5 Long House Close .......................................................................................................................................... 36 6 FINDS ................................................................................................................. 50 6.1 Quantification ................................................................................................................................................ 50 6.2 Prehistoric Ceramics ...................................................................................................................................... 51 6.3 Lithics ............................................................................................................................................................. 53 6.4 Medieval/Post‐medieval Material ................................................................................................................. 53 7 THE PALAEOENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMME ...................................................... 55 7.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 55 7.2 Reconnaissance Survey .................................................................................................................................. 55 7.3 Archaeobotanical Assessment ....................................................................................................................... 58 7.4 Radiocarbon Dating ....................................................................................................................................... 61 7.5 Monolith sample 556 from Testpit 2, Long House Close ............................................................................... 62 8 DISCUSSION .......................................................................................................... 65 8.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 65 8.2 Prehistoric Activity ......................................................................................................................................... 65 8.3 The Medieval Period and Later ...................................................................................................................... 69 8.4 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................................... 77 BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................................................................. 79 APPENDIX 1: PROJECT DESIGN 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