SHREWTON CHURCH OF ENGLAND PRIMARY SCHOOL SHREWTON ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVALUATION For WILTSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES DEPARTMENT CA PROJECT: 1911 CA REPORT: 05032 MARCH 2005 SHREWTON CHURCH OF ENGLAND PRIMARY SCHOOL SHREWTON WILTSHIRE ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVALUATION CA PROJECT: 1911 CA REPORT: 05032 Author: Derek Evans Approved: Mary Alexander Signed: ……………………………………………………………. Issue: 01 Date: 1 MARCH 2005 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. © Cotswold Archaeology Building 11, Kemble Enterprise Park, Kemble, Cirencester, Gloucestershire, GL7 6BQ Tel. 01285 771022 Fax. 01285 771033 E-mail: [email protected] Shrewton Church of England Primary School, Shrewton, Wiltshire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology CONTENTS SUMMARY........................................................................................................................3 1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................. 4 The site ................................................................................................................ 4 Archaeological background.................................................................................. 5 Archaeological objectives .................................................................................... 5 Methodology ........................................................................................................ 5 2. RESULTS ............................................................................................................ 6 Field 1 (Trenches 1-4).......................................................................................... 6 Trench 5 (Field 2)................................................................................................. 7 Trench 6 (Field 2)................................................................................................. 7 Trench 7 (Field 2)................................................................................................. 7 Trench 8 (Field 2)................................................................................................. 8 Trench 9 (Field 2)................................................................................................. 8 The Finds ............................................................................................................. 9 The Biological Evidence....................................................................................... 9 3. DISCUSSION....................................................................................................... 9 Post-medieval/undated (Field 2) .......................................................................... 9 Late post-medieval/19th century (Field 2 earthworks) ......................................... 10 Modern (Field 1)................................................................................................... 11 Conclusions ......................................................................................................... 12 4. CA PROJECT TEAM ........................................................................................... 12 5. REFERENCES .................................................................................................... 13 APPENDIX 1: CONTEXT DESCRIPTIONS...................................................................... 14 APPENDIX 2: THE FINDS................................................................................................ 17 APPENDIX 3: LEVELS OF PRINCIPAL DEPOSITS AND STRUCTURES...................... 18 1 Shrewton Church of England Primary School, Shrewton, Wiltshire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Fig. 1 Site location plan (1:50 000) Fig. 2 Trench location plan, showing archaeological features (1:1000) Fig. 3 Sections AA (chalk track 503) and BB (water channel 603) 2 Shrewton Church of England Primary School, Shrewton, Wiltshire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology SUMMARY Site Name: Shrewton Church of England Primary School Location: Shrewton, Wiltshire NGR: SU 0680 4400 Type: Evaluation Date: 14-17 February 2004 Location of Archive: To be deposited with Salisbury Museum Site Code: SSS 05 An archaeological evaluation was undertaken by Cotswold Archaeology in February 2005 on land at Shrewton Church of England Primary School, Shrewton, Wiltshire, at the request of Wiltshire County Council Environmental Services Department. In compliance with an approved written scheme of investigation, nine trenches were excavated within the proposed development area. The evaluation did not establish a high degree of correlation between earthworks previously recorded at the site by the Royal Commission on Historic Monuments and the below-ground archaeological remains. In those instances where such a relationship could be shown the earthworks were found to result from post-medieval/modern structures, apparently those shown on 19th century cartographic sources. A small number of minor undated ditches and pits were also uncovered, as was an undated but probably pre-1773 water channel. Late post-medieval/modern disturbance of the ground was widespread, especially in the present school field, but the retrieval of only a single residual sherd of medieval pottery suggests that there was not extensive occupation of the site in the medieval period. 3 Shrewton Church of England Primary School, Shrewton, Wiltshire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 In February 2005 Cotswold Archaeology (CA) carried out an archaeological evaluation of land at Shrewton Church of England Primary School, Shrewton, Wiltshire (centred at NGR: SU 0680 4400; Fig. 1) at the request of Wiltshire County Council (WCC) Environmental Services Department. 1.2 This archaeological evaluation was requested by WCC, following consultation between the Local Planning Authority (LPA) and Helena Cave-Penney, County Archaeological Officer for WCC, in advance of an application for the redevelopment of the existing school site to provide for a new school and residential development, and the conversion of an adjacent pasture field into a new school playing field. 1.3 The evaluation was carried out in accordance with a brief for archaeological recording prepared by Helena Cave-Penney (WCC 2004) and with a subsequent Written Scheme of Investigation (WSI) produced by CA (2005) and approved by the LPA acting on the advice of Helena Cave-Penney. The fieldwork also followed the Standard and Guidance for Archaeological Field Evaluation issued by the Institute of Field Archaeologists (1999), the Standard for Archaeological Assessment and Field Evaluation (WCCAS 1995) and the Management of Archaeological Projects II (EH 1991). It was monitored by Helena Cave-Penney, including site visits on the 16th and 17th of February. The site 1.4 The proposed development area encloses approximately 1.5ha and incorporates the existing school site – occupied by school buildings, a playing field and a tarmac playground – and a field to the west which is currently under pasture (termed Fields 1 and 2 for the purposes of this report – Fig. 2). These two areas are at present divided by Tanners Lane. The site is bounded by the High Street to the east and by residential properties elsewhere. 1.5 The underlying geology of the area is mapped as River and Valley Gravel deposits over Upper Chalk (BGS 1959). 4 Shrewton Church of England Primary School, Shrewton, Wiltshire: Archaeological Evaluation © Cotswold Archaeology Archaeological background 1.6 Archaeological interest in the site arises from a series of earthworks visible in Field 2 (see Fig. 2). Surveyed by the Royal Commission on Historic Monuments in the 1980s, these were presumed to be part of the medieval village of Maddington first mentioned in AD 1178 (WCC 2004). The site is situated close to the centre of modern Shrewton, approximately 250m from the Church of St Mary, which is largely 19th century in date but retains elements of an earlier Norman church (Pevsner 1985). Medieval pottery is reported from the garden of ‘Springside’, but the location of this property in relation to the present site is unknown (WCC 2004). Archaeological objectives 1.7 The objectives of the evaluation were to establish the character, quality, date, significance and extent of any archaeological remains or deposits surviving within the site. The evaluation was also intended to test the hypothesis that the earthworks visible in Field 2 related to medieval occupation of the site. This information will assist the Local Planning Authority in making an informed judgement on the likely impact upon the archaeological resource by the proposed development. Methodology 1.8 The fieldwork comprised the excavation of nine trenches. These measured 20m in length, except for two 15m-long trenches in Field 2. All trenches were at least 1.6m in width. It was necessary to reposition some of the trenches from the layout proposed in the WSI (CA 2005) due to the presence of trees, concrete/tarmac surfaces and above- and below-ground services. These alterations were undertaken with the approval of Helena Cave-Penney; the revised trench layout is shown on Fig. 2. 1.9 All trenches were excavated