Land off Mill Lane Chinnor Oxfordshire

Oxford Archaeology (OA) was commissioned by A2 Dominion to undertake a trench
evaluation on the site of a proposed 78-unit housing development, on land to the
north of Mill Lane, Chinnor, Oxfordshire. Historically the site lay within the open
fields of Chinnor Manor, in the immediate hinterland of the medieval and postmedieval
village. Mill Lane follows the line of the Icknield Way, a long-distance
routeway of ancient origin. There was considered to be potential for prehistoric,
Roman and Anglo-Saxon burials in proximity to the road.
Seven trenches were excavated across the 3.5ha site, which represents a 1%
sample of the area. Provision was made for a further seven trenches, in the event
that the first phase trenches revealed significant archaeology, but no such remains
were found. The trenches were placed evenly across the site to test the results of a
previous geophysical survey, which had not detected any archaeological features.
The absence of archaeological remains in the trenches generally confirms the
conclusions of the geophysical survey, indicating that the site has low potential for
discoveries during the development.