FOUR OAKS, RODBOROUGH, ,

ARCHAEOLOGICAL WATCHING BRIEF

C.A.T JOB: 841 C.A.T REPORT: 99995

MARCH 1999

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.

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Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire; Archaeological Watching Brief

CONTENTS

CONTENTS ...... 1

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ...... 2

SUMMARY ...... 3

1. INTRODUCTION ...... 4

1.1 Introduction ...... 4 1.2 Geology, Topography, and Landuse ...... 4 1.3 Archaeological and Historical Background ...... 5 1.4 Methodology ...... 6

2. WATCHING BRIEF RESULTS ...... 6

3. ASSESSMENT OF RESULTS ...... 7

4. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...... 8

5. BIBLIOGRAPHY ...... 8

1 Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire; Archaeological Watching Brief

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Fig. 1 Location plan ...... 10 Fig. 2 Location of groundworks ...... 11 Fig. 3 Sections 1, 2, and 3 ...... 12

2 Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire; Archaeological Watching Brief

SUMMARY

In February 1999 Cotswold Archaeological Trust was commissioned by Mr John McNally to undertake an archaeological watching brief at Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire.

Two undated, linear features were identified during the watching brief.

3 Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire; Archaeological Watching Brief

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Introduction

1.1.1 This report represents the results of an archaeological watching brief conducted on the 5th February 1999 at Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire. The site is centred on NGR SO 854 036 (Fig. 1). The watching brief was a required condition of planning permission for the erection of a dwelling, the construction of a driveway, and the installation of associated services (Planning Ref. S 98/986).

1.1.2 The watching brief was conducted in compliance with the Standard and Guidance for Archaeological Field Evaluations (IFA 1994), the Management of Archaeological Projects (MAP 2) issued by English Heritage (1991), and the Statement of Standards and Practices Appropriate for Archaeological Fieldwork in Gloucestershire issued by Gloucestershire County Council (GCC 1995). The Project Design was submitted to, and approved by Gloucestershire County Council and Council prior to the commencement of fieldwork.

1.2 Geology, Topography, and Landuse

1.2.1 The underlying geology of the study area comprises Upper Inferior Oolite limestone (BGS 1972). The site lies on a promontory between the Stroud and valleys. The study area slopes fairly steeply downward to the south and lies at heights of between 180m OD and 175m OD.

1.2.2 The site is bounded to the north by a private road, to the east and west by residential properties and gardens, and to the south by Rodborough Common. Prior to the building works the study area was a garden.

4 Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire; Archaeological Watching Brief

1.3 Archaeological and Historical Background

1.3.1 The site lies between Rodborough Common to the north and Common to the south. Both areas have recently been subject to surveys conducted by Gloucestershire County Council Archaeology Service. Rodborough Common was found to contain 187 sites and monuments dating from the Bronze Age to the present (Parry 1993, 233). The survey of Minchinhampton Common identified around 300 earthworks ranging in date from Neolithic to Second World War (Russet 1991, 237).

1.3.2 Approximately 250m to the north of the site lies an extant earthwork forming part of the western boundary of the area of residential development in which the study area lies. The earthwork is aligned north to south and comprises a bank with a ditch to the east. This earthwork and the area immediately to the east was investigated between 1936 and 1955, this work was reviewed by Parry (1996) and can be summarised as follows.

1.3.3 A trench was opened across the northern end of the earthwork by Clifford (1937). Sherds of early Roman pottery and abraded fragments of late Iron Age pottery were recovered from the bank. The Rodborough earthwork and those at The Bulwarks, Minchinhampton and Amberley Camp were interpreted as comprising the boundaries of a Belgic oppidum (Clifford 1937, 300). The earthwork was reinterpreted as the defences of a military camp of the Roman conquest period by B. and H. O’Neil (1952, 26-7). This interpretation was based on slight banks visible on the surface and the evidence of an aerial photograph showing a rectilinear cropmark enclosing an area of 3.24ha to the east of the extant earthwork. Evidence of late Iron Age and early Romano- British activity was identified by Clifford (1964, 145) within a foundation trench.

1.3.4 The two ditches identified from aerial photographs by B. and H. O’Neil were excavated by Rennie (1959) in advance of residential development. Ditch I was dated to the 1st century A.D.. Ditch II was stratigraphically later, and

5 Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire; Archaeological Watching Brief

although no finds were recovered from it, a medieval date was suggested for it. Together with the extant earthwork Ditch II was considered to comprise a medieval agricultural enclosure located on an area of earlier occupation. The Roman finds recovered from the bank of the earthwork by Clifford in 1937 being residual in character. Using documentary and aerial photograph evidence Parry argued that Ditch II is unrelated to the extant earthwork. He also suggests the cropmarks and extant earthwork enclose an area of 9.80ha and functioned as the boundary of medieval agricultural enclosure (Parry 1996, 155).

1.4 Methodology

1.4.1 All groundworks including foundations, surface stripping, and service trenches had been mechanically excavated without there being an archaeologist in attendance. This watching brief therefore concerned itself with a retrospective examination of all areas of groundworks. All identified deposits were recorded in accordance with the CAT Technical Manual 1; Excavation Recording Manual (1996). The finds will be deposited, with the landowner’s consent, with Stroud District Museum.

2. WATCHING BRIEF RESULTS

2.1 The natural substrate (103) was found to comprise limestone blocks in a matrix of medium grey-yellow sandy clay. Cutting the natural substrate ditch [104] was located within the building foundations (Fig. 2). The ditch was 1.5m in width and 0.40m in depth with gently sloping sides and a concave base. The ditch was visible in a section 3m to the east, although, only 0.38m in width and 0.07m in depth (Fig.3), suggesting that it either terminates or is truncated at this point. Unfortunately no dating evidence was recovered during excavation of the fill (105). This deposit comprised a medium brown-red clay- silt and was overlain by 0.11m of a medium red-brown clay-silt (102) subsoil and 0.10m of dark grey-brown clay-silt topsoil (101).

6 Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire; Archaeological Watching Brief

2.2 Within the service trench 15m to the north a further linear feature [106] was identified cutting the natural substrate (103). This ditch was 1.70 m in width and had gently sloping sides. The full depth of the ditch could not be established due to the presence of services at the base of the trench. The ground to the east of the service trench had been mechanically excavated in preparation for the construction of the driveway. This operation had truncated the ditch and it was therefore impossible to assess the exact orientation and extent of the feature. The feature was filled by (107) which was of the same character as (105) in ditch [104] and in turn overlain by subsoil (102) and topsoil (101).

3. ASSESSMENT OF RESULTS

3.1 A significant part of the study area was investigated during the course of the watching brief and it was found to contain two undated linear features. The fills of the ditches identified were similar to the clean brown-red clays of Ditch I and were dissimilar to the loosely packed limestone in brown soil comprising the fill of the probable medieval Ditch II, as described by Rennie (1959, 27 and 32). The ditches identified during this project may therefore be of a similar date as Ditch I. Unfortunately beyond these tentative conclusions it is not possible to comment on the relationship between these ditches and the archaeological activity to the north. The archaeological watching brief was an appropriate response which has successfully monitored for the presence of archaeological deposits.

7 Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire; Archaeological Watching Brief

4. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Cotswold Archaeological Trust would like to thank Mr Charles Parry, Archaeolgy Officer, Gloucestershire County Council, Mr Hugh Roberts, Planning Officer, , and Mr John McNally for their assistance during the course of this project.

The fieldwork was carried out by Laurent Coleman. This report has been compiled by Laurent Coleman and the illustrations prepared by Rick Morton.

5. BIBLIOGRAPHY

BGS 1972 Geological Survey of Great Britain, Sheet 234, Gloucester

CAT 1999 Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire: Project Design for an Archaeological Watching Brief

Clifford, E. 1937 The earthworks at Rodborough, Amberley and Minchinhampton, Gloucestershire, Trans. Bristol Glos. Archaeol. Soc, 59, 287-307

Clifford, E. 1964 Early Iron Age pottery from Rodborough Common and Duntisbourne Abbots, Trans. Bristol Glos. Archaeol. Soc, 83, 145-6

GCC 1995 Statement of Standards and Practices Appropriate for Archaeological Fieldwork in Gloucestershire

IFA 1994 Standard and Guidance for Archaeological Watching Briefs

O’Neil, B. and O’Neil, H. 1952 The Roman Conquest of the Cotswolds, Archaeol. J., 109, 23-38

8 Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire; Archaeological Watching Brief

Parry, C. 1993 Rodborough Common Survey, Trans. Bristol Glos. Archaeol. Soc, 111, 233

Parry, C. 1996 An Earthwork on Rodborough Common, Gloucestershire: A Review of the Evidence, Trans. Bristol Glos. Archaeol. Soc, 114, 143-57

Rennie, D. 1959 The excavation of an earthwork on Rodborough Common in 1954-5, Trans. Bristol Glos. Archaeol. Soc, 78, 24-43

Russett, V. 1991 Minchinhampton Common Survey, Trans. Bristol Glos. Archaeol. Soc, 109, 237

9 Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire; Archaeological Watching Brief

Fig. 1 Location plan

10 Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire; Archaeological Watching Brief

Fig. 2 Location of groundworks

11 Four Oaks, Rodborough, Stroud, Gloucestershire; Archaeological Watching Brief

Fig. 3 Sections 1, 2, and 3

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