Griffin, N; Barber, L; Gale, R; Sibun, L; (2024) An Archaeologically Excavated Medieval Saltern in the Ouse Estuary, Newhaven, East Sussex

Excavations undertaken by Archaeology South-East (ASE; UCL Institute of Archaeology) revealed a medieval saltern located on the Ouse Estuary betweenNewhaven and Bishopstone.It survived as a low oval mound some 75m by 50m in size, with evidence of salt-making activity surviving as numerous pits (some of which were clay-lined), up to four re-used hearth sites, two enigmatic bone alignments and a number of large pits or depressions that may have served as water reservoirs.The saltern was in use in the late 11 th to 12 th centuries.Fieldwalking revealed the sites of two further possible salterns, whilst a watching brief produced a small quantity of unstratified prehistoric worked flints. RESULTS Watching BriefThe watching brief maintained during the creation of reed beds and general landscaping across the site revealed evidence of prehistoric activity in the form of worked flints.All were collected from the machined surfaces and no associated features were observed.Various alluvial clays, silts and sands were exposed, with flint shingle noted at depths generally in excess of 1m below existing ground level.A few deliberately infilled ditches were also identified, all of which correlated with those depicted on early Ordnance Survey maps.Excavation