The Churchill Hospital, Oxford Archaeological

ARCHAEOLOGICAL WATCHING BRIEF

C.A.T JOB: 1099 C.A.T REPORT: 001241

NOVEMBER 2000

This report has been researched and compiled with all reasonable skill, care, and attention to detail within the terms of the project as specified by the Client and within the general terms and conditions of Cotswold Archaeological Trust Ltd. The Trust shall not be liable for any inaccuracy, error or omission in the report or other documents produced as part of the Consultancy and no liability is accepted for any claim, loss or damage howsoever arising from any opinion stated or conclusion or other material contained in this report or other documents supplied as part of the Consultancy. This report is confidential to the Client. Cotswold Archaeological Trust Ltd accept no responsibility whatsoever to third parties to whom this report, or any part of it is made known. Any such party relies upon this report entirely at their own risk.

The Churchill Hospital, Oxford. Archaeological Watching Brief.

CONTENTS

CONTENTS ...... 1

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ...... 1

SUMMARY ...... 2

1. INTRODUCTION ...... 3

1.1 Introduction ...... 3 1.2 The Study Area ...... 3 1.3 Archaeological & historical background ...... 4 1.4 Methodology ...... 5

2. WATCHING BRIEF RESULTS ...... 5

2.1 Site A ...... 5 2.2 Site B ...... 6

3. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS ...... 6

4. PROJECT TEAM ...... 7

5. BIBLIOGRAPHY ...... 7

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Fig.1 Location map ...... 8

Fig.2 Plan showing location of development sites A and B ...... 9

Fig.3 Plan showing location of groundworks at site A ...... 11

1 The Churchill Hospital, Oxford. Archaeological Watching Brief.

SUMMARY

During October 2000, Cotswold Archaeological Trust was commissioned by Stanhope Wilkinson Associates on behalf of Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust, to undertake an archaeological watching brief during the construction of two new car parks with associated services, at the Churchill Hospital, Oxford. The work was a required condition of planning permission which was granted by Oxford City Council (Planning Application Number: 00574/DAS/JG).

Despite the study areas close proximity to a known area of Romano-British pottery production, no archaeological features or deposits were encountered during the watching brief. Two residual sherds of Roman mortaria, in all probabality from the local industries, were however recovered from the topsoil.

2 The Churchill Hospital, Oxford. Archaeological Watching Brief.

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Introduction

1.1.1 This report presents the results of an archaeological watching brief undertaken by Cotswold Archaeological Trust (CAT) in October 2000 at the Churchill Hospital, Oxford. The watching brief was required as a condition of planning permission for the construction of two new car-parking areas and associated services, and was commissioned by Stanhope Wilkinson Associates on behalf of the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust.

1.1.2 The work was carried out in compliance with the `Standard and Guidance for Archaeological Watching Briefs’ issued by the Institute of Field Archaeologists (IFA, 1994).

1.2 The Study Area

1.2.1 The Churchill Hospital is situated in the Headington area of Oxford, with the city centre some 3km due west (Fig.1). The proposed development consisted of the construction of two new car-parking areas (Sites A and B) adjacent to existing car parking facilities (Fig.2).

1.2.2 Site A was centred on NGR SP 5425 0580. It measured approximately 55m by 50m and was sited on gently sloping ground at an approximate height of 90m OD. It was bound to the north by an existing car park, to the east by a narrow drive, and to the south and west by a small tributary of the River Cherwell.

1.2.3 Site B was centred on NGR SP 5455 0575. It measured 16m by 50m and was bound to the north by an existing car park, to the south and east by a brook, and to the west by Churchill Drive. 1.2.4 The underlying geology comprises Quaternary Head Deposits overlying Sand

3 The Churchill Hospital, Oxford. Archaeological Watching Brief.

and Calcerous Sandstone of the Beckley Sand Member of the Upper Jurassic period (Geological Survey of Great Britain (England and Wales), Sheet 237).

1.3 Archaeological & historical background

1.3.1 The study area appears to lie within the western extent of a complex of Roman pottery kilns, excavated between 1971 and 1974 (Young, 1975, 1-11). These produced a wide range of domestic pottery and were part of a group of pottery-producing sites, mainly situated in a north-south band to the east of the present city centre. These kiln sites would have been served by a main road, running between the Roman towns of Alchester in the north and Dorchester to the south, and also by a link road running from Frilford to the south-west in a line passing just to the south of the Churchill Hospital site and meeting the main Alchester-Dorchester road in the area of the present-day New Headington.

1.3.2 A watching brief was undertaken approximately 250m to the north of the present study area out in 1997 during groundworks associated with the construction of a new Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics (Brett, 1997). No archaeological evidence was encountered to suggest a continuation of any Romano-British activity connected with the pottery production sites. Evidence of modern cultivation in the form of shallow furrows, and the dumping of modern building rubble was encountered over the entire site.

1.3.3 In April 2000, CAT undertook a further watching brief within the grounds of the hopsital during the excavation of a series of engineering trial pits. Again no evidence of archaeological features or deposits were encountered (CAT 2000).

4 The Churchill Hospital, Oxford. Archaeological Watching Brief.

1.4 Methodology

1.4.1 A project design prepared by Cotswold Archaeological Trust was approved by Mr Brian Durham, Planning Archaeologist, Oxford City Council.

1.4.2 The mechanical excavation of the two new car-parking areas and associated services was carried out under archaeological supervision.

1.4.3 All identified deposits were recorded in accordance with the Excavation Recording Manual (Technical Manual 1 CAT 1996). A full written, drawn and photographic record of the watching brief was compiled in accordance with the archaeological project design.

1.4.4 The completed site archive will be deposited with the County Museums Service (Oxfordshire Museums) under accession number OXCMS 2000.140.

2. WATCHING BRIEF RESULTS

2.1 Site A

2.1.1 Natural substrate (103), identified solely within the trenches excavated for the insertion of soakaways, drain runs and a petrol interceptor, was revealed at a depth of approximately 0.40m to 0.55m below the present ground level. It varied from pure sand through to clayey-sands and was bright orange-yellow in colour, with occasional small pale blue-grey clay lenses.

2.1.2 It was sealed by subsoil (102) comprising loose, light to mid orange-brown sand approximately 0.20m to 0.25 thick. It had been extensively truncated by modern utility services (now obsolete). Modern building material (brick, tile, slate, wood), occasional pottery sherds (china), small fragments of animal bone, bottle glass, and plastic was retrieved from throughout the deposit.

5 The Churchill Hospital, Oxford. Archaeological Watching Brief.

2.1.3 Inturn it was sealed by mid to dark grey-brown silty sand topsoil (101). This was typically 0.20m to 0.30m in depth and contained fragments of modern building material (brick, tile, slate), pottery (china), bottle glass and animal bone.

2.2 Site B

2.2.1 As Site B was to be a temporary car park, no drainage runs were excavated, consequently the natural substrate was not exposed.

2.3.2 Subsoil (202) was revealed at a depth of 0.25m below the existing ground surface. Its composition was analogous with that of deposit (102) within Site A. It was sealed by the topsoil (201) from which two residual sherds of Roman mortaria were recovered.

3. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

3.1 As outlined above, no archaeological deposits were revealed during the course of the watching brief. Both sites (A and B) had been heavily disturbed in recent times, probably during the construction of the adjacent car parks and the nearby hospital outbuildings with associated utility services.

3.2 Two sherds of Roman mortaria recovered from the topsoil within Site B. Due to the residual nature of the finds little further comment can be made on the pottery, save to note that they are typical products of the local Roman ceramic industries and may be broadly dated to the mid third and fourth centuries AD (Young 1977, 76).

6 The Churchill Hospital, Oxford. Archaeological Watching Brief.

4. PROJECT TEAM

The fieldwork was carried out by Franco Vartuca. The report was written by Franco Vartuca and the illustrations were drawn by Rick Morton. The project was managed for CAT by Cliff Bateman.

Cotswold Archaeological Trust would like to thank Mr Roy Wilkinson (Stanhope Wilkinson Associates), and Mr Brian Durham (Oxford City Council) for their assistance during the course of this project.

5. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Brett, M., 1997 Wellcome Trust Centre, Churchill Hospital, Oxford: Archaeological Watching Brief. CAT Typescript Report 97490

CAT 2000 Proposed DEM Centre, The Churchill Hospital, Oxford: Archaeological Watching Brief. CAT Typescript Report 001172

IFA, (1994) Standard and Guidance for Archaeological Watching Briefs.

Young, C.J., 1975 Excavations at the Churchill Hospital, 1973: Interim Report Oxoniensia 39, 1-11

Young, C.J., 1977 Oxfordshire Roman Pottery BAR 43

7 The Churchill Hospital, Oxford. Archaeological Watching Brief.

Fig.1 Location map

8 The Churchill Hospital, Oxford. Archaeological Watching Brief.

Fig.2 Plan showing location of development sites A and B

9 The Churchill Hospital, Oxford. Archaeological Watching Brief.

Fig.3 Plan showing location of groundworks at site A