North of Saltwood Tunnel, Saltwood, Kent

The OAU was commissioned by Union Railways Ltd to conduct a field evaluation of 4.5 ha of land betwen the M20 and Saltwood railway tunnel as part of a wider programme of archaeological investigations along the route of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL). The site was located at NGR TQ 891 510, URL Grid Reference 95400 16950, on a greensand ridge on the dip slope of the North Downs. The west end of the site sloped down towards Sandling and the eastern part of the site was situated on level ground north of the railway tunnel. Sixteen evaluation trenches were excavated. A concentration of Roman features was located within a well defined area towards the centre of the evaluation, immediately south of the M20. The features comprised mainly ditches with several pits, and a linear 'hollow'. The linear features clearly continue into the area now occupied by the M20. The predominant alignment of the ditches is north-west to south-east suggesting a layout of enclosures/boundaries. A late second century (AD 160-200) Roman human cremation and associated vessels was located at the eastern limits of the site.