Pottery was at the heart of the ‘Neolithic package’ appearing in Britain with the first farmers around 4000 BC. It arrived as a mature technology and was essential to the new, largely sedentary, lifestyle and economy. It transformed storage and cooking practices, and the earliest ceramics seem to have been essential equipment in the new practice of dairying. The pottery changed over time and, as a result, ceramics have been fundamental to the construction of relative chronologies since the early days of modern archaeology. Even with the development of absolute dating techniques, the role of pottery as a dating tool has not diminished but instead has become refined and more accurate.But pottery is not just a tool to dating the past – it also represents a facet of prehistoric art and expression. Starting simply, ceramics became arguably the main medium for display with designs often of great complexity. Simple techniques, motifs and panels are combined to create highly decorated vessels often of great individuality. The use of inlays, pastes and slips added contrasting colors to these vibrant designs.By the end of the Neolithic, ceramics became one of the major grave goods of British Prehistory, acting as accompaniments to those that warranted formal burial whether by inhumation or cremation. This practice continued throughout the Early Bronze Age to the extents that, lacking contemporary domestic sites, most of the corpora of Early Bronze Age ceramics are largely sepulchral in context. As we increasingly realize that burial rituals may have been varied and complex, so the roles of these ceramics are becoming increasingly questioned.This book traces the 3000 years of ceramic use and development in Britain, charting the changing forms and decorative techniques and the differing and changing roles that pottery played within its contemporary society.

The valley of the western Rother lies within the South Downs National Park but has a special character based on its Cretaceous geology of sandstones and clays. These give rise to soils that are ideal for agriculture but are extremely erodible. Over the centuries the area has been exploited by humans and partially cleared of forest. In this book, the archaeological history of the Rother Valley is summarized, with particular emphasis on the evidence for Mesolithic, Bronze Age and Roman occupation. Analysis of sediments in ponds adds to the evidence for changes that have happened over the last few hundred years. A notable feature of the cultural landscape is the network of sunken lanes.The Rother Valley contains unique chalk-aquifer fed streams with rare and protected species, such as sea trout and otter. Heathland, floodplain, wet meadows and woodlands are interspersed with agriculture, linked together by hedgerows and ditches. The health of the river is threatened by polluting inputs from farming and sewage. Past weather and hydrological records show the potential impact of climate change on the functioning of the river. The impact of recent changes on water availability for irrigation and human consumption are explored in relation to ecosystem requirements. Soil erosion is a significant problem, with the resulting high river sediment concentrations requiring expensive cleaning for the water to be fit for human consumption and the runoff often causes flooding of roads and properties. Mitigation measures aim to reduce the loss of soil on fields and interrupt connectivity between fields and the river system. We identify sediment sources contributing eroded soil to the river, the function of field-edge sediment traps, in-stream weirs and major reservoirs on sediment storage and connectivity.Finally, the book considers the future of the unique landscape that is the Rother Valley, including plans for restoration of the flood plain. Contributors include planners, researchers and managers of the large estates that are an integral part of the Rother landscape.

The date of the Cerne Giant has long been a matter for debate, as exemplified by a public and televised debate of March 1996, published as The Cerne Giant: An Antiquity on Trial (1999, Oxbow Books). Excavations were conducted in 2020 by the National Trust in the centenary year of its ownership of the Giant. The excavations were limited and targeted in extent and scope, the aim was to date the actual construction of the iconic figure by absolute dating methods (OSL). As the 1999 publication explained, the jury was still out – with advocates for a prehistoric origin, one connected to the period of the Civil War or a more modern one. In the event, the dates were a complete surprise, falling within the Anglo-Saxon period.The research has provided an accurate, scientifically verified date for the Cerne Giant. These unexpected results, together with the land-use history and ominous ‘disappearance’ of the Giant for six centuries, provide the platform for reconsideration and new discussion and debate.Part 1 deals with new research: the historical background and aims, the excavation results, stratigraphic finds, geoarchaeological interpretation, land-use history (environmental/land snails), and discussion. Part 2 is the wider discussion and implications derived from the results and places the Giant in his local and Saxon context. Part 3 begins with summaries of the other two excavated hill figures (the Long Man of Wilmington and the Uffington White Horse) followed by a series of essays from leading archaeologists, historians and experts in early medieval iconography.

Archaeological excavation of a 0.64ha area in advance of development of a larger field produced evidence of use of this landscape from the late Neolithic/early Bronze Age (Beaker period), middle to late Iron Age and middle to late Roman, besides later ridge and furrow. The Beaker period was represented only by a single pit containing the period’s distinctive pottery, with no evidence of the burial that often accompanies such deposits. A large C-shaped ditch can be dated to the Middle Iron Age, although it also received later pottery. It cut across a couple of field boundary ditches which also underlay a square enclosure surrounding a grave of Late Iron Age date. The burial, of a man aged in his 40s or older, had been placed beneath stone slabs but with no grave goods (except some probably incidental pottery sherds). A radiocarbon date places the burial (most probably) in the late 1st century BC or early 1st century AD. The main results of the excavation, however, date to the Roman period, from the middle of the 2nd century until the late 4th or even early 5th century. it had been anticipated that the site might contain a villa but no such structure was located, the features being mainly ditches, representing field boundaries or enclosures. Nonetheless some f the finds assemblages do suggest a relatively affluent site and it remains possible that there is a villa nearby, and the presence of a presumed corn-dryer tends to support this suggestion. A suggestion of continuity into the 5th century is difficult to substantiate on any grounds other than the stratigraphic depth of the ‘latest Roman’ period which has to accommodate at least three sub-phases involving fairly substantial changes in layout and seems difficult to reconcile with a shorter chronology entirely confined to the late 4th century. The latest feature, a very large ditch, puts the earlier field systems completely out of use.

Archaeological excavation revealed a latest Iron Age to Roman settlement typical of the Cotswold Hills for this period. The fieldwork revealed a complex settlement comprising numerous ditched (and hedged) pens, paddocks and enclosures which had been re-ordered on numerous occasions. The settlement was not enclosed per se but was aligned on a nearby ditched trackway. The emphasis on numerous small enclosures is thought to indicate that livestock management was the dominant economic activity of the occupants. Sieving recovered few charred cereal seeds and no facilities for cereal processing (such as corn driers) or storage were recorded. The faunal remains indicated a typical range of stock animals dominated by cattle followed by sheep and pig with some horse. Few finds were indicative of any wealth and the settlement was probably that of an ordinary farming community comprised of several related families. As with many settlement across southern England the site originated in the mid 1st century AD, flourished in the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD only to decline and then be abandoned in the 4th century AD. There were no indications of later occupation until the site was overlain by Medieval ditches and ridge and furrow field system.

Fieldwork revealed details of a wide landscape of Roman fields and enclosures laid out around the junction of two droveways and probably spanning the entire Roman period. An early Iron Age roundhouse radiocarbon dated to 653-542 cal BC had previously occupied the same area that was to be close to the heart of the Roman enclosures. However, the chief interest of the site lies in the late Roman period (later 3rd to 4th century) when a rectangular villa was constructed on the terrace edge overlooking the river Cam. Initially of just three rooms it was soon expanded to six and the southern end was then subdivided to form a bath suite. Although of very simple plan form, the building was of some sophistication with very substantial deep stone foundations carrying stone walls, an elaborate hypocaust, decoratively painted wall plaster, stone roof, and furniture including some with decorative stone tops. Other signs of obvious wealth, however, are lacking. The villa seems to have been demolished by the end of the 4th century, possibly earlier. The faunal component of the economy comprised a typical dominance of cattle followed by sheep/goat and pig with few exotic species, and the proportions of which changed little through the life of the settlement. Evidence for arable production was again typically modest, with no structures such as corn driers present, though millstones imply large scale production of flour.

Archaeological fieldwork in advance of mineral extraction spanning ten phases over 13 years at Horton Brook Quarry in Berkshire, revealed an extensive enclosed and organized landscape of Middle and Middle/Late Bronze Age fields, with broadly contemporary settlement clusters, whose chronology is supported by multiple radiocarbon dates. A waterlogged Bronze Age well had a preserved wattlework retaining structure and featured the ritual deposit of a human skull. This intensively managed landscape appears to have gone out of use with the digging of a late Bronze Age long boundary ditch which cut across the site, and perhaps heralded a period of less formal land use. There then appears to have been a long period of abandonment, with very few finds from intervening periods (except a few ditches on a very different alignment at the north end which might be Roman) until these Bronze Age deposits were overlain by a number of Medieval fields and an enclosure along with pits including a well containing waterlogged remains. Only on one small area was there an exception to this general abandonment, with rare (for the region) evidence of Middle Saxon settlement dating to the 7th to 9th centuries AD, represented by a nearly square enclosure and four pits. The site produced a considerable assemblage of Bronze Age pottery (albeit very few sherds in any individual feature) but other finds were very scarce. An extensive sieving programme recovered a modest amount of environmental evidence, apart from the waterlogged remains from several waterholes. A notable find made by a metal detectorist, separately from the excavation programme, was a gold torc with gold rings threaded onto it. The gravel extraction also dragged up two mammoth tusks.

Archaeological excavation in advance of quarrying revealed features ranging in date from Bronze Age to modern. The most significant results are three round barrows with an associated cremation cemetery, firmly dated to the 15th to 13th centuries BC, with a substantial pottery assemblage and a radiocarbon chronology. Other finds, however, were very few. The other significant phase of site use saw a rectilinear ditched enclosure with associated paddocks, representing a small Roman farmstead which came into being no earlier than the late 3rd century AD and continued into the 4th century before being abandoned. It is possible that the economy of the site was dominated by animal husbandry. This site is unusual in being founded relatively late in the period, when there is more evidence for sites being abandoned than for new foundations.

Fieldwork in advance of mineral extraction revealed a range of settlement and burial deposits of Neolithic, Earlier Bronze Age, Middle Iron Age and Roman dates. A few Mesolithic flints were also found. The distinctive deposits of Bronze Age date were four ring ditches. One was fully excavated, two partially excavated and another preserved in-situ. It is uncertain if a fifth partially excavated feature was a ring ditch or a sub-circular Roman enclosure. Ephemeral traces of broadly contemporary occupation were also recorded. The main archaeological deposits were two dense settlement complexes, just 300m apart, demonstrating considerable time depth with numerous intercutting features, multi-recut linear features and reorganized boundaries. The South site commenced as a circular enclosure in the Early Iron Age (c. 5th century BC) and was the genesis of a settlement that seemed to be continuously occupied up until the early 4th century AD. The North site commenced as an area of Late Iron Age field boundaries before developing into a large settlement complex again seemingly occupied continuously without a break into mid-4th century Roman times. Although there are no physical links between the two complexes, the ?triangular? form and orientation of funnel arrangement of ditches opening on to a large undeveloped area, suggests use of common pastureland.

Excavations in advance of mineral extraction revealed extensive archaeological remains spanning the early Bronze Age to the late Roman periods, with a few later features. The chief periods of activity were the later Bronze Age to early Iron Age, the middle Iron Age and early through to later Roman times. An extensive spread of deposits has been interpreted as a midden, rich in Later Bronze Age to early Iron Age pottery, which is a well-recognized 'feature' type for the period, albeit still rarely found, as preservation especially over such a wide area as here must be assumed to be rare. The prehistoric ceramics, mainly from this 'midden', form a regionally significant group. Iron Age roundhouses in two foci were accompanied by numerous pits and several 4-poster 'granaries', suggesting a protracted occupation in this period.A further ring gully seems to have been the site of an early Roman roundhouse, and this was soon followed by a sequence of rectangular stone structures which by the 3rd century would merit the designation as a villa, albeit a very modest one. Two structures appear to be corn-drying ovens, although it is not ruled out that the more elaborate one was a small plunge bath. A notable aspect of the site is the presence of human burials, perhaps in all the main periods of use and certainly in the later Roman phase. Isotope analysis suggests that all three of the individuals sampled originated in a colder climate than south-west Britain. The site chronology is supported by a series of radiocarbon dates.

This volume presents the results from archaeological investigations carried out betwen 2017 and 2020 in advance of development on two adjacent sites in the centre of Wallingford which revealed a sequence of deposits indicating almost continuous occupation from late Saxon times until the present. At 11-12 St Martin’s Street, a mitigation strategy was drawn up to preserve in situ the majority of archaeological deposits by foundation design, and only small areas requiring deeper groundworks were excavated. At 13–16 St Martin’s Street, more of the site had to be excavated. The earliest features (probably 10th to 11th century AD) included rubbish pits and buildings with cellars, and remarkably similar landuse continued through the 12th to 14th centuries. There is less evidence for 15th-century occupation but this may have been removed by the early post-medieval remodelling which probably saw the site in use as a garden. The later post-medieval period saw the site once more built on. The site’s assemblage of animal bones sheds light on the diet of the inhabitants in the earlier periods, and provides some evidence for horn-working and skin processing. While the other finds recovered point to a fairly low-status urban site in all phases, there are hints from the animal bones that the later Saxon inhabitants may have been more affluent.

Excavations in advance of gravel extraction on a 10ha site revealed a landscape occupied from the Later Bronze Age to the early Roman period, with later use in the Medieval period. The site published here complements a significant excavation to the south which had produced evidence for the earliest iron working in Britain. The results help to set the south site into its local landscape context, and also cover a longer timespan. A single Middle Bronze Age pit was followed by numerous Late Bronze Age to Early Iron Age pits, best classed as a dispersed open settlement. Finds of smelting slag from this period confirm the early dating for the iron working found to the south. Middle and Later Iron Age features also mostly comprised pits and postholes with no clear structural associations, although a ring ditch and up to a dozen post-built roundhouses can be projected and the continuation of a large enclosure from the earlier site. An area of industrial activity included more iron production from the 6th century BC onwards. Three pit alignments were also identified, one containing a density of iron slag. One pit also contained a quantity of acorns, a rarity on British sites.Two late Iron Age urned cremations were identified, and one Roman, and several deposits of pyre debris may be of either period. Late Iron Age to early Roman ditches represented three phases of an enclosure, likely part of a wider organization of the landscape at this time. Two iron-smelting hearths were identified, one of which contained in situ slag from the last firing of the furnace. All of the Roman deposits dated from the mid-1st to 2nd century AD. This early abandonment is in contrast to the later Roman date for the few Roman features to the south, so that a southwards shift in the focus of activity seems to be indicated rather than outright abandonment.The Medieval period was represented by a small isolated farm dated to the 11th to 12th centuries AD, although economic evidence was very sparse.The site's chronology is supported by an extensive radiocarbon dating programme and this volume includes reports on substantial assemblages of pottery (mostly prehistoric), metallurgical residues, and charred plant remains, but soil conditions were not favourable to the survival of most other classes of finds.

The excavation revealed an extensive spread of archaeological deposits, the limits of which were not reached. The majority of the features are of Earlier to Middle Iron Age date with a few deposits assigned to the Early Bronze Age, Middle Bronze Age, Roman and Medieval periods. Despite the proximity of the site next to the village of Greenham recorded in the Domesday Book, no Anglo-Saxon deposits were recorded and Medieval activity was restricted to a number of field boundaries. A cremation burial in a Collared Urn was the only certain Bronze Age feature. The Middle Bronze Age activity largely comprised a rarely encountered 'L-shaped' enclosure. The earlier Iron Age occupation initially comprised a dispersed open settlement with several post-built roundhouses, fence lines, 'four-post' structures and numerous discrete posthole and pit features. The settlement evolved into a Middle Iron Age settlement but now consisting of an enclosure with ring gully roundhouses within. The small number of Roman features recorded included a single cremation burial of 2nd/3rd century date and possibly a rectangular building. The chronology of the site is supported by seven radiocarbon dates.

Archaeological excavations on two adjacent sites in Honingham are reported in this volume. A series of pits containing deliberately placed deposits seems to span the Middle to Late Neolithic, with both Peterborough ware and Grooved ware strongly represented, indicating an early and persistent ritual significance for the location. This was emphasized when a round barrow was constructed in the early Bronze Age (although there was no evidence of an accompanying burial). The barrow’s ring ditch, however, remained open to receive a human cremation burial in the middle Bronze Age and was probably also still visible in the late Bronze Age when the use of the area shifted to settlement. In the late Iron Age, or very early in the Roman period, field boundaries were laid out, at least one of which was replaced on a couple of occasions into the early and middle Roman period. The two sites produced a significant prehistoric pottery assemblage, although other finds, and environmental data, were sparse. The chronology is supported by a series of radiocarbon dates.

Northwold Manor is a multi-period listed building (grade II*), about which almost nothing was known. Uninhabited since 1955, it had fallen into a state of extreme dereliction, and was beyond economic repair when the author purchased the property in 2014. He and his wife, Diane Gibbs, embarked on a major restoration that ran for nine years. The restoration was carried out as a quasi-archaeological operation, revealing that the building complex had Tudor origins, followed by the construction of a Stuart house, with Georgian improvements, and a new entertaining suite added in 1814. The Manor, with its fine drawing room, ballroom and orangery, was the grandest house in Northwold, and research into the families that occupied it revealed unexpected connections to the French Bourbon Court. From the 17th to the 20th century, the Carters were the principal owners, and a local branch of the family included Howard Carter, discoverer of Tutankhamen’s tomb.This account begins with a topographical study of Northwold and its three medieval manors, followed by an exploration of the decline of the Carter family in the late 19th century. That triggered the break-up of the Northwold Estate in 1919. Passing through several ownerships, the Manor was earmarked for demolition in 1961; reprieved, it became a furniture store in the 1970s, and every room was solidly packed. As the roofs failed and water poured in, ceilings and floors collapsed, carrying with them the stacks of rotting furniture. By the late 1990s, walls and gables were collapsing too, and the local authority attempted to intervene. A long struggle to save the Manor ensued, finally ending with compulsory purchase in 2013.Although manor houses occur in most English parishes, they have received surprisingly little archaeological study. Every year, hundreds are restored or altered, but rarely accompanied by detailed recording or scholarly research; and popular television programs reveal the shameful level of destruction that takes place in the name of ‘restoration’. This is a book like no other: the holistic approach to the rehabilitation of Northwold’s derelict manor house – involving history, archaeology, architecture and genealogy – demonstrates how much can be learned about a building that had never before been studied. The project has received several awards.

Excavations carried out prior to the construction of a new fire station in Guildford, Surrey, revealed a well preserved, in situ Late Upper Palaeolithic flint scatter. The site lay on cold climate fluvial sandy gravels deposited in braided stream systems prior to the onset of the Late Glacial (Windermere) interstadial. Typological analysis of the flint and OSL dates suggest that the scatter itself dates from the first half of the Late Glacial (Windermere) interstadial (c 1415KBP). The lithic assemblage is homogeneous and, apart from initial extraction and nodule testing, all stages of flint manufacture are represented. Two main concentrations of knapping are represented, the main focus of which were the production of blade blanks some of which were removed from the site. Functional analysis of the tools suggests relatively short occupation during which hunting, smallscale craft activities linked with the retooling of hunting weapons and the manufacture of hide items, and limited processing of animal and plant materials took place. The assemblage is comparable to that from Wey Manor Farm, Surrey, 17km further downstream, and raises the question of the relationship between the two sites. Both share technological and typological features in common with the Creswellian, though Wey Manor Farm has a greater diversity in lithic point types. Comparison with Continental assemblages suggests that the Surrey sites share affinities with the Older Azilian or equivalents in northwest France and Germany and implies strong postMagdalenian influences in the Late Upper Palaeolithic of Britain.