PCAS Archaeology Ltd was commissioned to undertake archaeological monitoring and recording during groundworks for a residential development of 66 dwellings on land on the west side of Bradley Road. The topsoil was stripped over the entire site, and the hardcore layer laid along the new road layout before the monitoring commenced. The trenches for the drainage system were excavated under archaeological supervision using an excavator fitted with a 0.60m wide bucket down to a depth of c.1.20m from the current ground level. Wider trenches with stepped sides were excavated using a 2.00m wide bucket down to a depth of 20.00m to install the manholes. Archaeological monitoring continued during the excavations of the house foundations in plots 61-64. All deposits observed were recorded using standard PCAS context recording sheets, and the progress of the groundworks were noted on a standard PCAS site diary sheet. One feature was positioned using the plans provided by the developer and its section drawn at scale 1:20. Representative sections were drawn at scale 1:20 and digital photographs were taken throughout the monitored area: a selection from the photographic record is reproduced in this report. No graphic recording took place in the stretch between manhole S106 and manhole S105 for safety reasons and for the installation of trench boxes which hid the sides of the trench. Archaeological monitoring and recording during groundworks for a residential development of 66 dwellings on land on the west side of Bradley Road only exposed an undated north-south ditch in the central part of the site. No continuation was recorded further north or south which suggests either that the ditch was relatively short or turned to form an enclosure. No artefacts were recovered that might indicate its date. The natural geology generally consisted of gravel, pebbles and flints in a reddish-brown sandy matrix. However, a further natural deposit with a diffuse horizon was recorded the central-eastern part of the site. It consisted of dark greyish brown silt clay incorporating flints and could be of alluvial origin. A layer of sandy clay with frequent pebbles and flints, likely a subsoil, was recorded with varying thickness across the site, while little of the original topsoil only survived along the eastern edge of site as this had been mechanically stripped at the beginning of the groundworks. A north-south land drain was recorded in the excavated house foundation an in a manhole trench at the north-eastern corner of the site.
Elisa Vecchi (Mon,) studied this question.