StavertonEXCAVATIONS AT NEW TERRACE, STAVERTON, WILTSHIRE
October - November 2007
When a planning application was lodged with the council to build a new link road, and subsequent housing development the first archaeological investigation of the site began. A number of machine dug trial trenches were excavated by Cotswold Archaeology in 2002 and a further series of trenches was excavated in 2004 when a second planning application was submitted.
The 2002 and 2004 evaluations established the presence of Neolithic, Early Bronze Age, Iron Age and Romano-British features in the northern third of the proposed development area. An extensive geophysical survey of the site, also in 2004, showed that the northern third of the field was covered in what appeared to be an extensive field system.
The excavations of 2007 have exposed a great deal more of the multi-period activity previously identified by the earlier evaluations. The geophysical survey correctly predicted the location of some of the field boundaries, but the 'enclosure' seen on the geophysical survey proved to be a natural soil mark.
The earliest feature to be found was a small scoop in the ground filled with pottery dating from the Early Bronze Age (2400-1500 BC). A single field boundary ditch dating from the Late Bronze Age (1100 BC-700 BC) was also investigated.
Two clusters of postholes and stakeholes were found in the south-west and south-east corners of the site which appeared to date from the Iron Age (700 BC-43 AD). These two clusters lay to the south of a former stream channel which once crossed the site on an east/west axis. This channel appeared to have been in-filled in the later Iron Age period with a second channel taking its place by the Early Roman period (mid 1st century AD). This second channel appeared to mark the southern limit for a Roman field system located to the north.
