Excavations at Oxford Science Park, Littlemore, Oxford with contributions by Alis I.\IR B IR( 1.1\. 1'\[1 BII",1I0R'<. I'lL I BOOlIi . l'IOl.I" (,RL 'DO'. CLIIiU 1'l.H". 1..\, J 1(. ... " ". Ilu;o L\\I 0"-\\'11 \ \I IR .... ~I.IL RU.' MELLOR. ADRI" G, I'IR ... I Rand RL III I'F 1.1.1", SL\I~I\R\ lullllr%/fu(lll1ll'nll{{alwm ll1ulrrlflkt'1l for (1larw 1'\II/lIUm to lilt' OVmd Shef/a Park pmdllu(/ n'itirna 1m lilt' lora/ "111'11'011"'1'111 fmm the po.'/-gl(1(wl l}uUKI ''',ollg'' to tht' prt'/I/I/oriC El'ldma lor \It-Iollthu ll£ltt'Ii) (III tIll \lIt' U'(H nhtnmn/ from itt/lin 111 laIn Im/IlI.",. SWII/"r!., \'ro/IIIH(. far/.\' Bmll:.t' .Igr. fllld mul­ llltt' nIflIlU'~1{t' mill',Il II ,,/nf'nllt'd IZ¥ "fllt/'Ull ,IIndl "lUI jlH/h . .1 Jlil ronlainmf{ Beakn polin') Ut(l\ lortl/rtf lI/mlg u,/tll tl/lIT pil, oj ,h, Inm Igf' l1uludmg (mt' oj tit, lain muldlr /ron .-Ige. Shnrl, oj n,,-(, Iron l,L:"f //Olin) 1/'01' fI/lfl prnr"/. ROil/fin POUt',')' iI'tll prnflll 1111 ,h, IIII' hoi" III lhe form ()f a Kenna/ ,man t/ullIJ{lillo nlnt',,.,,t uuuwrmg of jil'ld\ (llid 11.\ df'itllt'mll' \1'11'{"/wlI (1m/Importation onto tilt \Ill' II) Irlg/a­ S(lV~1I\. I \fltll'ml'lIl oj Iht' 11lK{o-SaxfU! pnlod 11'(/\ II'IJrt'\t'ntfd b). Ih, pr,,\I'llU oj Hmknl (ffllllrl'd /rlll!dlllg' u'llIit a IIInitn.,(,1 ~Jfln1l\lf{u{ had ber1l d/'\IHl.w'd "J 19th-ct'UIIII) (fluurylJ1gjor 111I11'\1011t. ohn 'ioure J leriLage Senict's. on behalf of Iht' \()( \nhacology GnHtp. carried OUI j <.tl"(hacologlcai ill\CMig~lLions lor \Iagdalen DCH' lopmenh in adyancc of Junhcr de\eloprnenl of the Science Park. "\ lhree-slaged c\aiu<.ttion of the propo ... ed ... ite \\"~lS unclerl ..llell in 19991 prior to planning ronSCJ1l being gr~lIlled. rhe e\"alualion cono;bted of it geoph~ ... icitl "'lIne~. with limited trcn(hing of appi.lrt'1ll arclldcological anomalies. '\lone of ti)est' clllolllalies were {()ullci to be of al"{:haeologi<:al signifiranct'. being Illainl~ geological in nature, and Iherefore the trenching "<I~ e"ended 10 gia> a wider co\·erage. The re~ult was that two loci of archaeolog~ \\ere identified \\ ith other mOle \\idely disper~ed sporaclic <lc:ti\il\ ~u'lpened.i? .\s a result a conchtioll \\i.IS ~ttL~lChed to the planning consCIH for a tUlUlolled ("X( .. I\f.ltion of the (\\0 ICKi <inc! lill a \\at( hing brief during eanhmm ing ani\ itie~ ()\{'r lilt, IT'll of lht., dt.·\"e!opmelll 'Inc. I hi ... lepoll i, an edited \"ersion of the full rcpOlllhat Gill be «)lind in the Oxrord,hin." Count, Site, and \lonul11ent .... Rccord. It i... illso \\ithin the archi\"e that ha., been deposited at IIll' OxJord,hln: \Iu,ellms Stole. I h(" empha'!il' i, on the prchi~LOI+ic lithic., and pOllen. and the .\nglo-S'lxon Hructures and finds Of partl(.lIl ...u intere ... t i... lhe repon 011 the \nglo­ Saxon anim ...ll bonc. I \ ~t:"Pflll for \O( \llh"eulug\ Grnul) on.l (.t"()Ph~'I(.11 ~llrH' carnc:d OUl at (hlmd Sc.1C:1l((: 1\lrt.... I.mkmelll'. () !eIre'· (~Ir.llitqan unpllbl. lepC)ll. \1.m.11 Iq~~)}. 2 ·llh.N·" 2 ,md.\ of \nhd1<lecJlvhri(.11 h.t1U.lllflll.1I Iht: (hlmd \c.ll·n(C P"dTk. Lilliemore. (hfmcl: l'lfI"o\C;'(IDt'H:lopmt'1lI Phd'o('!\ 2 .lIld :1.,' (.\O( \Hh.ll'u1 CHlUP unpuhl. It'pon. June 1999). Industrial •• School Estale • • N •• LEYS , :; • / •• •• :; • t :; , • , , Minchery Farm Fiddl.... Sewage Works elboW caravan ParI< SANDFORO-ON-THAMES I· i~ I ""lIl' lo( ,lIioll OXIORI) c.,CIF:'(" "\l{K 1.11 II f:\lOH.1- Hi:-) LOC.\rJO'. rOPOLOGY .\'D (.tOLOGY The ..,itc is located on thc S. side ofLhe old Oxford to Thamc raih,a, line. and is comprised of IWO diSlinCl areas - Phases 2 and 2a (Fig. I). The area of Pha,c 2 (~P 5390 0210 celllrcd) "bounded b) Ihe Lilllernore Brook 10 Ihe!'< .. Ihe A4074 LO Ihe SII'.. Grenoble Road l() Ihe S. <lnd the prcyiously dc,-e lopcd ')c-iencc Park to the E. Phase 2a (SP 5415 0240 celllred) is a ni:\lrow strip of land comprising a section or the N. bank of LiulenlOre Brook up to the railway. with the grounds of lhe former Littlemore Ilospital to the \\'., and a track bct\\cen tIolinchen Farm and Liulcmore to the E. The total area was r. 20 acres (8 ha.). The site lies on COI'alhan Formation Beckie; Sand Member:\ that S. of Liulemorc Brook was a sand) cia) or sand capped in the S. hal( of the sitt' b, a thin la,er orJimestone. The limestone is situated on Ihe crest ofland hing to the 'j. of the '~llIey ~Iope. Traces of allu,-ium were present along the S. edge of the Brook. -rhis area ha'i becn )ubslallliaJly landsGlped in the past, ilwoh'ing straightening of the channel and possible I"cl1lm-al of allm-iulll prior 10 1876 (co mpare meandering nature further E. and subsequent Mraightcning).1 but Including dumping of material on U1C edge of lhe floodplain. On the lower slopc of the ,'alley side was an area of pcnhed allu\'iulll including sub~tantial deposits of peaL indicating the clearance of the waLer course in antiquity enabling a hlslcr nO\\ of water and "Iubsequclll ctiLLing down of the ,allc) bOUOIll.5 North or LiLtlelllore Brook in the Phase 2a dc,elopmem area were deposits of allm'ium of ,-arying deplh excepl for Ihe :-IE. 100 m. which formed Ihe \'alle\ slope. I"he alluvium contained deposits of peat. Ate. SP 5415 024H was e,idence for the COnnllCl1lC with a smalltributar~ flowing 'touthwarcls from Littlclllore. I he Phasc 2 area \,-as co,-ercd b} a modcrn ploughsoil 250-350 Illlll. thick; the land had been in set-aside for the preyious 2-:l YCat·s. Below this matcrial was an earlier plollghsoil of probablc medic,'a l dme Ihat \\<lS up to 100 mm. thick oycr the area of nalllral sand. OYcr the limestone areas this ploughsoil was thin on the margins and elsewhere absent. This earl) plough",oil was only distinguishable from the lInderl)ing natural sand b) being slightl) darker in colour. The top of the natural sand had suffered from biolUrb~ltion as e\'idcnccd by hl k of clarity of the top of features if under-machined, and the presence of sherds and other finds within the top of the sand . .\RCIIAEOLOGIC .\.L B.\CKGROLi\O b, IMOGE:-I GRL!'<DO:-" I he area around ~Iinchel! Farm hits bcen sll~ject to a numbel' of arch::leological cyaluations and watching briefs since four Roman potten; kilns were found at Sandford Sewage Farm (;-"GR 5P 5199 0227) and excanned in 1879. along wilh Ihe dis«)\c,) thaI abolll an acre ,liglllh lUll her E. was cOlored "ilh pOller) debris (SI' 5510 022). rhe pOllefl manufactured at these kilns was of a wide range suggesting that the kilns here wcre in usc throughout the Roman period. Further Roman discO\'c rics followcd : a Roman egg-shaped urn found at ~Iinchery Farm in 1920 (5P 5-185 0229) and a ~ucces5ion of discoyeries of poue!')" kilns and coins wilhin I km. oflhe site forming the subjctl oflhis report. rhc construction of an cxtension lO Liltlemol'e Ilospital in 1934 led 10 the discmcq' of anothel kiln with its stokehole and related potten scatter (SP 5:~3 024-ccntred). The pOllcr~ IIlduded the necJ...s of screw-neck l1agons of the bl to 2nd century AD and fragmentl! of morlana . .I Cl'olugic.tl rcL -I I'll edilioll os map and ~ubsc<l"clll t:dn. !l Infonllduon from 01: Mal k Rohinson. I hh I () II" '\1 () () R i-_ I, I \ I . During the (on",truuion of the Blackhlrd Lt.·, "'I Pellpheral Road, nm\ kncm 11 '-''''I (,I el10hk KO.lci. 10 tht.' E. of the Oxford Sc"ience Pall... limitt'd fUrLher c\ idence of Roman <t<lint' wa", I(lund. Ihifi wok the form of a pm,,,,ihle Roman plougll''I{)il 01 dump and dit(hc", \\ith 1.11t: Roman lilb.1i I i(m e\er. there wa ... uHl'iiderablt' t·\idellft' of I ron Age and ~omt· Bronn' \gt.' alll\il~. FolI()\\II1g: l.'xG.l\-alion, an Iron \gt' ,t·ull.'nlelll \\a~ ilxated. (OIllpri ... ing <l dOllbk rinK­ cll1ch teatllic with it large outer <h1<.h and a Ie" ,uh,tallliai latel' inner ditch (Sf> :j;;;,) 020). Othel features a""ociated "ith Ihi, welt.- clilcht.·",. pils. po",th()lc~ and gullit.·",. (he "holt- ... il(, had ht·l.'n in ""Ie froll1 the Earh Bron/c .\gt' lIl1Iil the \-lIddle Iron ,\geJ _\ \\a[(hing brief ftll t it'd out dlll ing the lon",trunioll of' the: Ph.. ",t., I huildings of lhe Oxfold '-,ciel1((' Park re\l:ak·d a "Iingk' ",mall abraded slll'rd 01 whal ilppeared 10 be late Inm Age pOllt.'I} .H Bt'I\\(:'('n 11:\ 1 and 115,1, Liulemolt: PriO!\ \Va", founded as a hOllse of Beneciininl' nlll1\. Ill{' ~it(· of thi~ pl'ioq. Minchcl') Farm (SP ;).155 0215), Iie~ immediateh to the \\'. of Ih(' (hl()lci Stil;'nf(:~ Park. Fc\\ archaeoloKi<:ai (t,.