Excavations at Watchfield, Shrivenham, Oxfordshire, 1998 By VAU.II" BIRIII.O. \\llh comribUlion; b) 1'1111 • \ "LlRf.WS, Ibt III L E\ <'Rl. RO\\ E'\A GALE. S. II \\I1L10,-DI ER, P. A I L\RLlI,\t" 1'\1 HI" 10'\, M. LAIIlLA\\', J. l. McKIi'l f\ and LORR.\I'\ I MIl'l /,\\1 and illustration> BY S. 1'... J\MES S M~IARY ~~t"\t'\ Irr/ult'oiogy wm colll1m\.\I01Jed to untieitalU' tht' arr/wl'oiolrral eX(lwtiOll mId rt'cordmg oj fln1f"n QI"((I.I lolllllmg J.8/w. al Walthjieid. OVord.,IWl'. m (l{/t'fmrr oj illww;"g drt,elopmnz/. Til, tJt'l'l'loJmwnt \11, u'(u lora/I'll on 'hI' mlrthem .\ldt oj Ualdlji,liJ on th,. Jring'~ oj (l Corallian itmt'\/ont ndgt. -t,rhnfo/()K'((l[ t.V(llI(l/wm dunllg (1111/ Hlhvqut'llt 10 th, (om/nl(twll of th, Slm'l't'nham B)'jJflH to lht 1JOP1h 11IId rt'l't'a/nl fI wudl Middle Irml Agt' mdOJfd\t-t,lemt'lIt lind (111 Earl) SIl.\on 't'lnt'ln). /1U'ff prill.ci/)al "rf{il oj archaeoh'fr1col (trlll'lt) Wt'1'f ('ncOImlned, Th,.'it 1L't'Yt: LIlt _\oulhtm fdgt oj tin t.{n(l .\flddle Iron .Igr njdO~UYf Oil Ihl' (rl'\l of lilt CorallUlIl ilm,\IOIU' ridgf allhf lL'f\lfnl flul of thf \llf,' a compln. oj Lalf Imn 1{!tIRo1TUHlO-Brih\h rnclo\t,rt' d,lfht>\ muJ a..... \(Klali'd Pi" at thl' foot (lllht' Coral/lim ndge: (Iud a HlUI" Rmuano-Brih,h rYl'lIuliiOIi rnllt'tt1) {md fwther mdo_myt'\ to the east oj FmmgdOl/ Road, INI R(1)LCl 10 ' 'l A Tc ... sex t\rclli:leology was commis ... ionccl b}' Laing P,anner ... hip Iiousing to undertake V V'=Ir<.haeologiGII excavation and recording in advance of the construction of extended facilities at the Joint Sen ice COI11I11"nd and Stafl College USCSC) at Watch field. Oxf()rd,hire. A condition aLtached to planning con ... ent for the dc\elopment required the implementation of a programme of archaeological mitigation \\ork designed to ensure the prest.'l\'<tllon b~ record of significant archaeological features and deposit5. ,\ geophysical suneyl had prc\'iou,l) idcntifit'd eXlensiH' anomalies of possible archaeological origin o\'cr subsLintial pan, or the propo~ed de\-e1oprnem area. Subsequent e\ ..1Iuation Lrial trcnching2 identified 1\\0 areas of po"iblc intcnsi,'e seulemem acthil\ of later prehistOl-i< and Romano-British date, tog-ethel \\ ith morc eXlensive ani\ it) of a similar date auoss wider areas of the site. I \.llli Bartlett. J S,C S.C Wtll(hfield. Shri\(.'nhdlll: RL'I)Oi't un \n.haeogt"Oph""lcal ~UI\('\ (ullJ?uhl. (lient repuH. 199;). • ' \Il\nh;Jcnlogl(.dl f."aluauon at JOll1l SCI "i(c Command dnd ",Ian College Wi.Jlchfieid. Shri\cnhalll. Oxford.,hilc' (..\0(: \rc.haeolog'!. unpubL dienl lepOII. 1997). ~., •• \ \l (.11" KJRBt.(.h. I r \L " .. .. .. .. OXON f GJ. Wll T S ,. o ,.... ~ " '-""""''',. • I • r ~ C FI ~. I "'iilt, lot ,won plan \\" \ I ( II f J 1- In., II R I \ I " II \ \I () X I () I{ D .., II I K ~ ~2:' '" ... ... ... WATCHFIELO 0b:===-____c====- ____ c===,;;~ HI(.:!. Area !txaunn plan \ Blief~ is'iucd b, the Deput) COlllll) Archaeologist Tt:'quircd the excavation of II areas tor.alling I;,omc 3.8 ha .• in order to investigate fealUrC\ or areas of archaeological interest identified during the C\'aIU3Lion. Field\H)rJ.. \\<1, undertaken o\er a period offouneen \\ccks between 22 J line and 25 September 199H. (;fO[()f{'!i. Tnpograph} flud Lallduv \Vatthfield lies in the Vale of the \\Thite Ilorse on the watershed of the Ri\crs Ock and Cole. 32 km. SW. 01 Oxford and 8 km. NE. 01 Swindon (Fig. I) . rhe delclopmcnt site was Im'med adjacent 10 the e,bung JSCSC facilitl to the .... of lI'atchlicld, S. of Majors Road (the B1508). rhe sile comprised approximatel) 19.7 ha. cenucd on Sl.; 257 907 and was di\'idcd Into two parts on either side of Faringdon Road. which joinli the B·1508 and the A 120 Shri\cnhalll Bypass to the N. of the site; excavation arellS 1-8 la} to the E. of this and areas 9-11 LO the II. (Fig. 2). rhe Im.Dority of the site. comprising Areas I-H and 10. la) in anlble fields sloping gent!) from \\'. to E. at between 93 m. and 100 Ill. 0.0, '1 he underlying natural substrata (oT11pri ... ed interlea\ing sands. c1a~!t i.lnd gra\e1s \\uh Ji·equent outcrops of Corallian Limestone bedrock. nlC we tern part of the site. (ompl-i ... ing Areas 9 and 11. lay at between 100 m. and 106 tn. 0.0. on the creM and east-fiRing slope of a ridge of ferruginous sand o\"erhing Corallian Limestone bcdrod.. -f r( /ult%gtm/ IJarkKl"Ou"d lht.' earliest finds from the immediate \'ic: inity of the .!llle comprise an assemblage of worked flint of Latc Mesolithic date, reco\'ered from exca\'ations during the construclion of the Shnvenham B\pas!t in 1983 and subsequent!\ iTT 1989. immediatelv to the '\. of Area I t I in 3 '\\al( hfidct. Shri\"t~nham: Brid lor an An.haeologlt:.ll Rcwrding .-\{lion' «holl Count) .·\rchdeol . ~t:n·lct:s. unp"bl. blief, 1997). I C. \(ull, 'h;Cd\-ali()1l and Sune) at Watchlicld. O).ior(hhil"t:. HI~ti·92·. 11(Jultol.Jnl. 119 (1992), 12H-2Hl. :.?:ll \ \ l (. II \, B I H. n I, ( h. t- I \ L an arca now protcncd.h a ~(hedulcd Monumt·nt. 1 he 'ale 01 the White 11m e Sunc\,; a large·s<"alc licldw~lll..ing ",urvey conducted to the fo. of \\-atchfield, also found e\ Idencc of \le.,olithic atti\it~, mw,th confined to the Cor,-Illian IOIl11auoll. E\ldence of 'leolithic and Bronle \ge acti\it~, Icprc",cllLCd b) residual fineb and a ",mall T11l1nbel of let-Hurl'''', \\d.!t abo rcco\cred from th(' 19H3 and 1989 exca\ations.h The ",.lIne eXGlvation .... aho revealed the l"Cmain.!t of a ,mall enclosed sculement of ~Iiddlc 11'011 Age d"llc, the .... outhern edge oh\hich lay within the pn.'..,cnt ..,ite, tlnd ~m Earl) Saxon (cmelt.'r). In the Lilt' Iron\gt', the Vale of the ''''hite Ilor..,e f()lfllcd the tribal boundan helWt'('1I Lhe \Irebates lO the S. and the Oobunnii LO the 7 I he \ '~l1c of the \\'hlt(' Hor,e Sunc, prodllced no e\idenu.-' of Late Iron Age acti"l\ III Ihe \iClnit) of " 'atchfield and. with thc exception of the hilllorts to the '\i and S. ofLhl' \ 'ale, \(~I'~ liulc e\'idence for Iron 'He "t<:ti\"iL) \\ithin the area of Ihe sun'e\ (I~ a \dlOle.H rhe ' ·a le of the White II~r~(' lies \,"ithin the ROJ1l~1I1 road network and i~ c1o..,c to ,c\l'nd toWIlS, most notably the fivl/IH Glpit<.ll at ('irenu',ler (ConnlUm [)Obll"lIIl1um), and \\'anborough (DllW(OnlOl1lllm) near Swindon, I he Lpper rhames Valle~ to lhe' and the Berkshire 1)0\\'11, 10 the~, were "reas of eXLenr,hc Ronl'-tno·British acti\'ily. ("he fiddwalkillH 'lInc\' located po""ible buildings of \ <.lriou", k\l'I, of '(Kial SLatu, in .!tc,"cl'allo(-ation..,. Clnd ..,uggested that Lhese existed within a dearcd, ordered and intcnsi\'e1y exploited lan(h<apcY I"he existence of a ,ubslanti:.tl ROlllano·Briti..,h bllildmg to the S. of the site \,a.., I CpOi Lcd in 1905; ho\\'c\'cr,~..., thc building was 'delt'ned though nol ul1('(l\cred·,lO its funnioJ1 '-mel ",talll' remam lInc.:crtain. althouRh a \ ilhl i~ .!tuKge",ted. rhe Earl~ Saxon inhumation cemctery e,ca\<tlecl in 19H2 and 19~9 imme<h'-'tl'" to tht, V of the sitt.' provides dcal e\idence of ~t ",,,,on ",eulc::mcnt III the \'Icinit,; IH)\\('\(.'1. no ",culemenL remains of thi.., period have \l't l>et'll di,"-O\t'rcd jll the \\'atfhfic.:.'ld art'a I h(' ('adiest documental") reference to \\'Cllchlicld ( 1I (l'f/nffld), in a chaner of AD 9~ll, stall·S (hiu it \"h an eSlate of20 hides when il \,as graIHt'd to <t thegn named lElfl"ic b, h.ing}< "thd"'(~II1. I he name itself appears 10 be (.I (olllbinatioll 01 tht' pl'l'..,on;:11 name IiU'((111 and thl' Old lllgiish [rid or open land." E.xtcm,j\,c ridgc tinct furrow cal thwork.., 1elonkd during earlier archaeologkal WOI J.. in and around the ,ite l2 ..,uggt'M that it lay \\ilhill thl' ("(IIIHlIOIl fiekb of the \'illagc during the mcdie\al and po~t-Illt'die\'al pel"iod .... , the ~clIlC:llll·nt pll'~ull1abh lying in Ihe \idnit~ of (hl· present \'illage" Parts of thc ..,ite \'Crt: u",t,d ~h it pri..,onc:r of \'ill camp during the 19:~9··15 lOllfhft \lthollgh the C'lt'1ll Ollhls h ul1("crtain .•lIl'a.., of di..,ullhancc visible on the gt'()ph~'1ical ... une\ and additional area ... clKolllllel"t'd clUJ IIlK Ihe lOlll"~(' of the exca\-alion.., art' ."..,ullled to hl' rel.ned to the clearance of the camp. ") \1 lingll" Ill, Inf, of Ih,. IIllI/l" Jlmv \/I,-l't'\ (IHR ~IX. 1!'~1I)" Ii Scull, op. lil. noll" I i l. "(·!I",ood. Irihill Bound.tlll",! \ 1t:\\l·cI hom thl· I't"'''Pl"ltl\t· ot 'umi.,matlc E"cleflU:', III H Cllnlillt.' and D, \fib ~(.'(kl.