Land off Bedford Road, Little Houghton, Northamptonshire. Archaeollogical Trial Trench Evaluation

A programme of archaeological trial trenching was undertaken on land off Bedford Road, Little Houghton, Northamptonshire. The proposed area of development comprised a 2.1 hectare area of grassland located off Bedford Road on the south side of the village. In July 2018 Francis Jackson Homes commissioned an Archaeological Desk-Based Assessment to inform a possible planning application for residential development of the site. The assessment highlighted the high archaeological potential of the site, with particular emphasis upon cropmarks indicating the positions of possible prehistoric ditches and an enclosure, plotted from aerial photographs of the site. In consequence the planning archaeologist of Northamptonshire County Council recommended evaluation of the site, through geophysical survey followed by trial trenching. Geophysical survey of the site using a fluxgate gradiometer was undertaken in August 2018. Owing to the presence of metal stock fencing, geophysical survey was possible only on the eastern part of the site. Trial trenching of the site was undertaken in October 2018 through the excavation of fifteen trenches - some positioned to target anomalies identified on the geophysical survey and others distributed randomly to investigate remaining parts of the area. On the north-west side of the site the trial trenching identified a pit containing 97 sherds of Late Bronze pottery, in the area not subject to geophysical survey. A very rich assemblage of charred cereals was recovered from an environmental sample taken from the fill of the pit. On the south side of the site evidence of Iron Age activity was recorded, with pottery, a loom weight and animal bone recovered from the ditches and pits in the area of the cropmarks identified by the Desk-Based Assessment and where anomalies consistent with archaeological features were recorded during the geophysical survey. Evidence of medieval ridge and furrow agriculture was recorded in a number of the trenches. On the north-west side of the site the trial trenching identified a pit containing 97 sherds of Late Bronze pottery, in the area not subject to geophysical survey. A very rich assemblage of charred cereals was recovered from an environmental sample taken from the fill of the pit. On the south side of the site evidence of Iron Age activity was recorded, with pottery, a loom weight and animal bone recovered from the ditches and pits in the area of the cropmarks identified by the Desk-Based Assessment and where anomalies consistent with archaeological features were recorded during the geophysical survey. Evidence of medieval ridge and furrow agriculture was recorded in a number of the trenches.