Flixton Park Quarry, Flixton, Suffolk FLN 088 and FLN 090 Assessment 3B (Volume I; Text, Figures and Plates)
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Flixton Park Quarry, Flixton, Suffolk FLN 088 and FLN 090 Assessment 3b (Volume I; Text, Figures and Plates) Post-Excavation Assessment Report SCCAS Report No. 2013/099 Client: Cemex (UK) Materials Ltd. Principal Author: Stuart Boulter February/2015 © Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service and © Suffolk Archaeology CIC Flixton Park Quarry, Flixton, Suffolk FLN 088 and FLN 090 Assessment 3b Post-Excavation Assessment Report SCCAS Report No. 2013/099 Principal Author: Stuart Boulter Contributions By: Sue Anderson, Sarah Bates, John Crowther, Julie Curl, Val Fryer, Richenda Goffin, Sarah Percival, Ian Riddler, Alison Sheriden, Cathy Tester Illustrators: Stuart Boulter, Linzi Everett Editor: Rhodri Gardner Report Date: February/2015 HER Information Site Code: FLN 088 and FLN 090 Site Name: Flixton Park Quarry, Flixton, Suffolk Report Number 2013/099 Planning Application No: W/10999/10 Date of Fieldwork: 2009 - 2011 Grid Reference: TM 3075 8680 Oasis Reference: suffolkc1-154978 Curatorial Officer: Edward Martin (superseded by Dr. Matt Brudenell) Senior Project Officer: Stuart Boulter Client/Funding Body: Cemex (UK) Materials Ltd. Client Reference: N/A Digital report submitted to Archaeological Data Service: http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/library/greylit Disclaimer Any opinions expressed in this report about the need for further archaeological work are those of the Field Projects Team alone. Ultimately the need for further work will be determined by the Local Planning Authority and its Archaeological Advisors when a planning application is registered. Suffolk County Council’s archaeological contracting services cannot accept responsibility for inconvenience caused to the clients should the Planning Authority take a different view to that expressed in the report. Prepared By: Stuart Boulter Date: February 2015 Approved By: Rhodri Gardner Position: Contracts Manager Date: February 2015 Signed: …………………….. Contents Summary 1. Introduction 1 1.1 Site location 1 1.2 The scope of the project 1 1.3 Circumstances and dates of fieldwork 2 2 Geological, topographic and archaeological background 4 2.1 Geology, topography and recent land use 4 2.2 Archaeological background 4 3 Original research aims 7 4 Site sequence: results of the fieldwork 10 4.1 Introduction 10 4.2 Prehistoric 12 4.2.1 Period/Phase I.a. (Palaeolithic) 12 4.2.2 Period/Phase I.c. (Early Neolithic) 14 4.2.3 Period/Phase I.d. (Late Neolithic) 15 4.2.4 Period/Phase I.e. (Early Bronze Age) 15 4.2.5 Period/Phase I.g. and I.h. (Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age) 38 4.2.6 Period/Phase I.0. (prehistoric unspecified date) 60 4.3 Post-medieval 60 4.3.1 Period/Phase V.b. (post-medieval, 17th – 19th centuries) 60 4.3.2 Period/Phases V.d. (post-medieval, 20th century) 63 4.4 Undated 63 4.4.1 Period/Phases 0 (undated) 63 5 Quantification and assessment 69 5.1 Post-excavation review 69 5.2 Quantification of the stratigraphic archive 69 5.3 Quantification and assessment of the bulk finds archive 70 5.3.1 Introduction 70 5.3.2 Pottery 70 5.3.3 Ceramic building material (CBM) 75 5.3.4 Fired clay 78 5.3.5 Worked flint 79 5.3.6 Heat-altered stone 90 5.4 Quantification and assessment of the small finds archive 92 5.4.1 Introduction 92 5.4.2 Methodology 92 5.4.3 Small finds by period 93 5.5 Quantification and assessment of the environmental evidence 112 5.5.1 Human skeletal remains 112 5.5.2 Animal bone 113 5.5.3 Charred plant macrofossils and other remains 115 6 Significance of the data and potential for analysis 126 6.1 Realisation of the Original Research Aims 126 6.2 The potential and significance of the stratigraphic data 127 6.2.1 Introduction 127 6.2.2 Period/Phase I.a. (Palaeolithic) 128 6.2.3 Period/Phase I.c. (Early Neolithic) 128 6.2.4 Period/Phase I.d. (Late Neolithic) 128 6.2.5 Period/Phase I.e. (Early Bronze Age) 129 6.2.6 Period/Phase I.g. and I.h. (Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age) 129 6.2.7 Period/Phases I.0. (prehistoric unspecified date) 130 6.2.8 Period/Phases V.b. (post-medieval, 17th – 19th centuries) 130 6.2.9 Period/Phases V.b. (post-medieval, 20th century) 130 6.2.10 Period/Phases 0 (undated) 130 6.3 The potential and significance of the finds data 131 6.3.1 Introduction 131 6.3.2 Pottery 131 6.3.3 CBM 132 6.3.4 Fired clay 132 6.3.5 Worked Flint 133 6.3.6 Heat-altered stone 133 6.3.7 Small finds 134 6.4 The potential and significance of the environmental evidence 137 6.4.1 Human skeletal remains 137 6.4.2 Animal bone 137 6.4.3 Charred plant macrofossils and other remains 138 7 Updated research aims and task list 140 7.1 Introduction 140 7.2 Updated research aims 140 7.3 Stratigraphic analysis; required tasks 140 7.4 Bulk finds and small finds analysis; required tasks 141 7.4.1 Prehistoric pottery 141 7.4.2 CBM 142 7.4.3 Fired clay 142 7.4.4 Worked flint 142 7.4.5 Heat-altered stone 143 7.4.6 Small finds 143 7.5 Environmental evidence 144 7.5.1 Human skeletal remains 144 7.5.2 Animal bone 145 7.5.3 Plant macrofossils and other remains 145 8 Publication strategy 146 9 Analysis and publication; resources/programming 147 9.1 Staff for analysis and publication 147 9.2 Task list 147 9.3 Archive deposition 148 10 Acknowledgements 149 11 Bibliography 150 List of Figures Figure 1. Site Location 3 Figure 2. Flixton Quarry all features (sites 088 and 090 bounded in red) 8 Figure 3. 088 and 090 all features plan 9 Figure 4. 088 and 090; Period/Phase I.c. (Early Neolithic) 13 Figure 5. 088 and 090; Period/Phase I.e. (Early Bronze Age) 16 Figure 6. Monument 088:0065 17 Figure 7. Composite monument 088:0789/0788/0821/0856/0809; plan 21 Figure 8. Composite monument 088:0789/0788/0821/0856; section (S20) 23 Figure 9. Grave 088:0809; sections 28 Figure 10. Grave 088:0809; detailed plan 29 Figure 11. Ring-ditches 090:0020 and 090:0102 34 Figure 12. 088 and 090; Period/Phase I.g/I.h. (Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age) 37 Figure 13. Roundhouse 088:0502; plan 41 Figure 14. Roundhouse 088:0559; plan 42 Figure 15. Roundhouse 088:0610; plan 44 Figure 16. Roundhouse 088:1096; plan 45 Figure 17. Roundhouse 090:0414; plan 49 Figure 18. Four and six post structures (G1); plan 51 Figure 19. Four and six post structures (G2); plan 52 Figure 20. Four post structures (G3); plan 53 Figure 21. Miscellaneous structure 088:1095; plan 55 Figure 22. 088 and 090; Period/Phase I.0 (prehistoric unspecified date) 59 Figure 23. 088 and 090; Period/Phase V.b. (post-medieval, 17th – 19th centuries) 61 Figure 24. 088 and 090; Period/Phase V.d. (post-medieval, 20th century) 64 Figure 25. 088 and 090; Period/Phase 0. (undated) 65 Figure 26. Wristguard SF 088:1008; actual size 95 Figure 27. Scanning electron microscope images: 96 A) Encrusted sediment (x 5) B) Plant fibre attaching to sediment on top of the wristguard (x 200) C) Sandy sediment in transverse borehole (x 20) D) Partly-cleaned borehole showing traces of rilling (x 20) Figure. 28. SF 088:1009; X-ray and drawing (actual size) 101 Figure. 29. SF 088:1010; X-ray and drawing (actual size) 101 List of Tables Table 1. Provisional site phasing 12 Table 2. Quantification of the stratigraphic archive 69 Table 3. Finds quantities 70 Table 4. Quantity and weight of prehistoric pottery by site and date 70 Table 5. Earlier Neolithic pottery 71 Table 6. Quantity and weight of PDR pottery by feature 75 Table 7. CBM quantities by site 75 Table 8. CBM fabric descriptions and quantities (sherd count) by form 76 Table 9. CBM by feature with spotdates 77 Table 10. Fired clay quantities by site 78 Table 11. Fired clay fabrics and quantities 78 Table 12. Summary of the flint by type from 088 80 Table 13. Flint by context type from 088 86 Table 14. Summary of the flint by type from 090 87 Table 15. Flint by context type from 090 90 Table 16. Heat altered flint and other stone quantities by site areas 90 Table 17. Heat-altered stone distribution by feature type (both 088 and 090) 92 Table 18. Small finds by material type by site 92 Table 19. Breakdown of loomweights by site 105 Table 20. Loomweight catalogue for site 088 107 Table 21. Loomweight catalogue for site 090 109 Table 22. Faunal remains quantification by site, feature type and weight 114 Table 23. Faunal remains quantification by site, feature type and fragment count 114 Table 24. Faunal remains quantification by site, species and NISP 114 Table 25. Faunal remains quantification by feature type, species and NISP 115 Table 26. Samples from monument 088:0065 118 Table 27. Samples from monument 088:0788/0789/0856/0821/0809 120 Table 28. Site 088, samples from Early Neolithic pits 121 Table 29. Site 088, samples from Late Bronze Age pits 122 Table 30. Site 088, samples from other Late Bronze Age features 123 Table 31. Site 090, all samples 125 List of Plates Plate 1. Post-hole circle 088:0065 and cremation pit 088:0113 18 Plate 2. Cremation pit 088:0113 18 Plate 3.