Knowefield, Stanwix, Carlisle, Cumbria- Archaeological Assessment Report

In January 2006 Oxford Archaeology North (OA North) was commissioned by the Cumbria Institute of the Arts to produce an archaeological assessment of the Knowefield area of Stanwix, which includes part of the Hadrianic frontier and Stanwix Roman fort (NY 403 572). The entire study area forms part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire: Hadrian’s Wall World Heritage Site, and a significant part is also protected as a Scheduled Monument (SM 28484). The project involved the collation and synthesis of a considerable body of data generated by a series of archaeological investigations that extend back to the 1930s, and also included information provided by documentary and cartographic sources, listed building records, and stray finds of archaeological materials from within the study area. In addition, a walkover survey of the whole area was undertaken, as well as a geophysical survey of the playing fields area in front of the Cumbria Institute of the Arts.
The assessment has clearly demonstrated that archaeological remains of great importance survive below the modern ground surface over large parts of the study area, including much of the area currently occupied by the Institute of the Arts.