-y-efo-(A c r 1:41.0. SOUTH MIDLANDS ARCHAEOLOGY The Newsletter of the Council for British Archaeology, South Midlands Group (Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire) NUMBER 28, 1998 CONTENTS Page Editorial Bedfordshire Buckinghamshire 20 Northamptonshire 31 Oxfordshire 46 Publications 93 Reviews 93 Index 95 Notes for contributors 105 EDITOR: Barry Horne CHAIRMAN: Roy Friendship-Taylor 'Beaumont' Toad Hall Church End 86 Main Road Edlesborough Hackleton Dunstable, Beds Northampton LU6 2EP NN7 2AD HON SEC: Shelagh Lewis TREASURER: Jon Hitchcock Old College Farmhouse 75D Princes Street 2 Magdalen Close Dunstable Syresham Beds. Northants LU6 3AS NN13 5YF Typeset by Barry Home EDITORIAL The archaological picture in Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire continues in a state of flux. Buckinghamshire is a disaster area with little Museum or archaeology provision. Mike Farley has gone, the county is now only funding one post, the other is being funded on a short term basis by English Heritage. The archaeological provision in Milton Keynes has improved slightly but is still c,ausing the Group some concern. At the time of writing it looks as though the Bedford Archaeology Unit is to be externalised; in other words it is to sink or swim as best it can. You will see from the contents of this volume that lots of archaeology is going on in the Group's area. This is particularly so in Oxfordshire where a new vigorous group has started up in the north of the county. Regretably some groups who dig in the area have not submitted a report; this is particularly disappointing with regard to the gas pipeline which discovered many new sites as it cut through Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire during 1997. In conclusion I would like to thank all those who sent in reports and ask that they, and anyone else, send in articles for SMA 29. Please send a note, however short, of any work carried out in the four counties. Copy date for SMA 29 is 31st March 1999; please refer to Notes for contributors. Barry Home AIFA Bedfordshire BEDFORDSHIRE One surprise project (14-15a St Paul's Square, Bedford) came with the refurbishment of an office into a public house, BEDFORDSHIRE ARCHAEOLOGY SERVICE named The Bull-nosed Bat (a type of Bedfordshire brick). Although this did require planning permission there was_no (BCAS) requirement for an archaeological evaluation. Consequently when the condition of the building forced the developers to Evelyn Baker alter their approach and dig a number of large deep pile Archaeology Service Manager shafts, the discovery of an early cemetery came as a complete surprise: The cemetery appears to predate the grid The organisation has been in a situation of constant change plan of the pre-915 burgh, with the dating confirmed by 10th over the last two years. Many readers of CBA South or 11th century pottery in pits dug through the burials' Midlands journal will be aware that David Baker the County sealing layer. Much was made of "Bedford's Oldest Archaeologist was "retired" at the end of the financial year residents". 1996 to 1997. We have been for a year without a County Archaeologist, and David's duties have fallen on the shoulders of the two County Council Groups who succeeded Ampthill, Feoffee Almshouses (1103713824) him: the Heritage and Environment Group (REG) led by Drew Shotliff David Bevan, and BCAS. HEG includes the Historic Buildings Offirs, the Bedfordshire equivalent of an SMR Underpinning work on the rear wall of the Feoffee (which includes buildings), and the Archaeological Almshouses (within the churchyard of St Andrew's Church) Conservation Officer (archaeological planning). BCAS was was monitored. It was clear that during the 19th century originally put in a Consultancy Services Division along with burials had been inserted right up against the wall of the Engineers (about to be externalised under Compulsory almshouses; no traces of any Medieval deposits survived. Competitive Tendering) and the Council's County Training Group. Since then it has moved into the Environmental Services Division alongside REG, though the two parts are Bedford, 2 St Cuthbert's Street still entirely separate. We are now exploring the possibility Michael Dawson of externalisation under a county-wide initiative to find external partners to carry out the Council's various Four evaluation trenches were excavated at 2 St Cuthbert's functions. Street. They were designed to test the depth of surviving archaeology, to assess the character of the evidence and to The year has seen a combination of large scale fieldwork determine its extent. The site was located on the eastern edge supported by a series of evaluations. Many of the projects of what has been assumed to be the late Saxon burgh, are outlined below, and include useful additions to the major although it has never been clear whether this particular area Bedford Southern Bypass project: Cardington Road, was within the defences. The results of the evaluation Elstow/Harrowden, and land west of Elstow village. The indicate the earliest surviving archaeology dates to the 10th long-term excavation of the deserted Medieval and Saxon century, with the dating evidence predominantly ceramic. village of Stratton is one of the unit's show piece projects, The contexts from which the earliest ceramics were arousing a great deal of interest. More pieces of the jigsaw recovered were pits and together with the general lack of projects of the origins of Bedford and the Romano-British extensive structural evidence may suggest they were settlement around Kempston are adding to several years of associated with extra mural settlement, close to the earlier research. Saxon burgh (Hill 1970). Furthermore the evaluation suggests this settlement may have developed in the 10th Work in parallel has concentrated not only on post century. excavation but on reviewing and enhancing our systems and procedures. A new and considerably improved Procedures However the nature of later activity indicates that Manual, and a projects database have resulted. While BCAS occupation in this area may not have been continuous. The has started to work in the neighbouring counties of early pit digging certainly indicates the spread of habitation Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire and eastwards and later pits suggest the pattern of streets which Buckinghamshire, the District Auditor confirmed that developed at this time remained the framework of later Bedfordshire County Council has the power to undertake settlement, despite the construction of the castle precinct commercial archaeological work. A substantial cut in during the 12th century in the south eastern quarter of the BCAS' core funding saw a marked diminution of public Saxon burgh. However the effect of the destruction of the service archaeology, but this has largely been made up by castle in the 13th century could not be judged from this Redlands plc who provided funding which allowed Sandy evaluation except insofar as the area does not seem to have Town Council to commission a full colour popular booklet generated any significant evidence of activity until the later on Roman Sandy. This has been a considerable success. Medieval period. Mike Dawson and I attended the Medieval conference in Bruges where our two papers were published. BCAS also By the post-Medieval period historic map evidence shows produced another Annual Review and is already gathering St Cuthbert's to have developed as an area of habitation, material for the next issue. 1 Bedfordshire with houses, hostelries and shops as well as the rectory at 18 homogenous layer of only slightly modified subsoil. St Cuthbert's. It is during this period that the early evidence Excavation within small trenches has resulted in a was substantially truncated by a diversity of activities from discontinuous view of the cemetery, many of the burials later pit digging to recent (early 19th century) house could only be partially uncovered with the remainder lying construction. In particular the provision of services to the beneath the baulk. The individual graves were aligned east latter in the 20th century has added another raft of damage. - west and were arranged in closely set parallel rows running The damage was most acute on the frontage beneath the north-south. The skeletons follow two slightly different location of the proposed structures at 2 St Cuthbert's Street, alignments, the earliest are eastnortheast-westsouthwest and due to the cellarage in the north portion of the site and the later skeletons are more regular east-west. In addition, geotechnical holes excavated in the 1960s. (extract from quantities of charnel were recovered, some of which was BCAS Report 98/02) still articulated and had clearly been incorporated into the graves of later interments. A single sherd of Early-Middle Saxon pottery dating from the 6th or 7th century AD was Bedford, Town Centre Improvement Scheme found in the backfill of one of the graves. This might suggest Mark Phillips and Michael Dawson that the cemetery dates from before the foundation of the town. The third phase of the town centre improvements scheme was initiated by Bedford Borough Council in 1997. It Ultimately the cemetery went out of use to be succeeded by comprised limited worlcs including the reconstruction of evidence of occupation. Some of the graves were cut by pits roads at the junction of Horne Lane and St Paul 's Road, the containing domestic debris dating from the 10th/11th junction of Midland Road and River Street and construction centuries to the 15th/16th centuries. A bone counter, of a roundabout at the west end of Home Lane. The shallow possibly a gaming piece, was recovered from one of the later nature of the work confirmed that little archaeology survives pits. It was carved from the jawbone of a cow, and probably above approximately 26 m to 26.5 m OD but below this dates to the llth century.