Green Farm, the Street, Salcott, Essex Archaeological Evaluation
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Green Farm, The Street, Salcott, Essex Archaeological Evaluation for: Archaeology Collective on behalf of David Pummell CA Project: SU0159 CA Report: SU0159_1 OASIS ID: cotswold2-399206 HER Ref: ECC 4532 August 2020 Green Farm, The Street, Salcott, Essex Archaeological Evaluation CA Project: SU0159 CA Report: SU0159_1 OASIS ID: cotswold2-399206 HER reference: ECC 4532 Document Control Grid Revision Date Author Checked by Status Reasons for Approved revision by A 30/07/2020 RG SB Internal – SB review 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 ...................................................................................................... 4 2. ARCHAEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND ...................................................................... 5 3. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES ......................................................................................... 8 4. METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................................... 9 5. RESULTS................................................................................................................. 10 6. THE FINDS .............................................................................................................. 16 7. THE BIOLOGICAL EVIDENCE ................................................................................ 19 8. DISCUSSION ........................................................................................................... 23 9. CA PROJECT TEAM ................................................................................................ 25 10. REFERENCES ......................................................................................................... 25 APPENDIX A: CONTEXT DESCRIPTIONS APPENDIX B: TRENCH DESCRIPTIONS APPENDIX C: THE FINDS APPENDIX D: OASIS REPORT FORM APPENDIX E: WRITTEN SCHEME OF INVESTIGATION 1 Green Farm, The Street, Salcott, Essex: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Fig. 1 Site location plan (1:25,000) Fig. 2 Site, showing surround HER features (1:7,500) Fig. 3 Trench location plan with archaeology (1:500) Fig. 4 Trench 1: plan, section and photographs (1:100 and 1:20) Fig. 5 Trench 1: sections and photographs (1:20) Fig. 6 Trench 2: plan and photograph (1:100) Fig. 7 Trench 3: plan, section and photographs (1:100 and 1:20) Fig. 8 Trench 3: photographs 2 Green Farm, The Street, Salcott, Essex: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology SUMMARY Project name: Green Farm, The Street Location: Salcott, Essex NGR: 595114 213557 Type: Evaluation Date: 6-7 July 2020 Planning reference: 182272 OASIS ID: cotswold2-399206 Location of Archive: Physical archive to be deposited with Colchester and Ipswich Museum Service and the digital archive with the Archaeology Data Service (ADS) Site Code: ECC 4532 In July 2020, Cotswold Archaeology carried out an archaeological evaluation at Green Farm, The Street, Salcott, Essex. A total of three trenches were excavated. A medieval ditch which potentially formed the rear boundary of croft and toft plots was investigated in Trench 1, as was a possible medieval pit or posthole and a potential pit or natural feature of similar date. Remains of a possible post medieval trackway potentially connecting a cartlodge previously located at the rear of the property to a track which lead to the former ‘Church Wharf’ was investigated in Trench 3. This has not been positively identified however, and also has the potential to be a previous hardstanding for the farm. A short lived post-medieval pond identifiable on the 1897 and 1898 OS maps but not on the earlier 1881 or later 1922 OS maps was identified and recorded in plan in Trench 2. 3 Green Farm, The Street, Salcott, Essex: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology 1. INTRODUCTION In July 2020, Cotswold Archaeology (CA) carried out an archaeological evaluation at Green Farm, The Street, Salcott, Essex (centred at NGR: 595114 213557; Fig. 1). This evaluation was undertaken for Archaeology Collective (AC), who were acting on behalf of their client, David Pummell. Colchester Borough Council has granted planning permission for the erection of a single dwelling and garage on the site (planning ref: 182272). Condition 11 of this planning permission required the implementation of a programme of archaeological work in accordance with an approved WSI. The scope of this evaluation was defined by Jess Tipper, the archaeological advisor to Colchester Borough Council (CBC/AA), in a brief (Tipper 2020). The evaluation was carried out in accordance with a Written Scheme of Investigation (WSI) prepared by Becky Ryan of AC (2020; Appendix E) and a Method Statement which was prepared by Preston Boyles of CA (2020) and approved by Jess Tipper (CBC/AA). The evaluation was also in line with Standard and guidance for archaeological field evaluation (CIfA 2014; updated June 2020), 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 The 0.33ha site is located within the village of Salcott, on the south side of The Street, opposite St. Mary’s Church, which is to the north-east (Fig. 1). Salcott Creek, which feeds into the basin of the Blackwater and Colne river estuaries, lies just to the north of the church. The site currently comprises a collection of former farm buildings and a pond, situated in a rectangular, north to south aligned plot of land. It is bounded to the north by The Street, to the west by residential plots, to the east by a farm, and to the south by fields. It is situated c.5m above Ordnance Datum (AOD). The British Geological Survey (BGS) website does not specify the superficial deposits present at the site, although Head clay, silt, sand and gravel deposits, formed up to 3 million years ago in the Quaternary Period, are recorded in the near 4 Green Farm, The Street, Salcott, Essex: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology vicinity (BGS 2020). The surface geology overlies a sedimentary bedrock of marine- derived London Clays, formed 48 to 56 million years ago in the Palaeogene Period (ibid). 2. ARCHAEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND The WSI (AC 2020) provides the following information regarding the archaeological background of the site: “The scheduled remains of Great Wigborough henge (1011466) are located c.1km to the north east of the Site, which dates to the Neolithic period. Although there are no visible ground level remains, a circular ditch can clearly be seen as a cropmark on aerial photography, which measures 46m in diameter with two opposed entrances. A scheduled Bronze Age bowl barrow (1009450) is located c.1km to the north east of the Site. It survives as an earth mound which measures 30m in diameter and is surrounded by a shallow ditch. The scheduled remains of St. Mary’s the Virgin’s Church (1019880) is located c.245m to the north west of the Site. The upstanding remains are also Grade II listed. The monument includes a roofless nave and slightly narrower chancel, of the original church which dates to the 13th century. However, the construction of the church primarily used Roman tile and brick, septaria, pegtile, flint and Kentish Ragstone. There are also 14th and 15th century features. The church was abandoned at the end of the 19th century. Written descriptions of the church dating to the 18th and 19th centuries indicate that the church previously had a tower, but it had collapsed by the 18th century. There are also a number of listed buildings surrounding the Site, including the Grade II listed barn at Green Farm (4224768), located c.15m to the south west. Red hills of likely Iron Age date (MCC7357, MCC7361 & MCC7362) have been identified c.420m and c.620m to the east of the Site, one recorded as red plough soil over a low mound (MCC7357). The location of the foundations of a Roman building are located c.235m to the south west of the Site (MCC7388). Pottery (MCC7358) was also identified c.390m to the east of the Site. 5 Green Farm, The Street, Salcott, Essex: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology Virley was recorded in the Domesday Book as one of the smallest settlements. The survey records it comprising of only four households (https://opendomesday.org/place/TL9413/virley/). Documentary sources indicate that the Verli family held the parish during the late 13th century. The place name ‘Salcott’ indicates a “building where salt is made or stored” (Mills 2011, 403) and likely