Iron Age and Romano-British Remains, Land off A1-A17 Junction, Newark

Between 21st and 30th September 2020, Oxford Archaeology East undertook a programme of trial trench evaluation at land off A1/A17 junction, Newark, centred SK 824 556. This was conducted in advance of a proposed development on the site of a distribution facility and associated infrastructure. The works were undertaken under the auspices of RPS on behalf of Simons Developments Newark Ltd, assisted by Delta Planning.
The agreed WSI was for the excavation of nine trenches across the area of identified archaeological interest, covering c.2.7ha, which would provide a 3% representative sample. The presence of an established crop of miscanthus (elephant grass) across the study area however, inhibited appropriate and safe cutting of the crop to enable the full programme of works to be undertaken without potential damage to the archaeology. It was agreed with the Archaeological Advisor for Newark and Sherwood DC that initially one trench would be excavated to assess the anticipated impact from the miscanthus root system on the archaeology. Following an initial site visit to view the results of the first trench, it was agreed with the Archaeological Advisor that another two trenches would be excavated and the results reviewed to assess if further works would be required at this stage. Following the excavation of these trenches and a second site visit with the Archaeological Advisor, it was agreed that the current works were sufficient for the Advisor to make an informed decision on the planning application.
The evaluation uncovered extensive and complex archaeological remains across all three trenches, predominantly comprised of enclosure and boundary ditches. A total of 142 sherds (3.024kg) of pottery dated from the Late Iron Age to the later Romano-British periods were recovered from a range of features across all three trenches. Peak occupation of the site is suggested by the ceramic data of dating to the Later Roman period that perhaps may be tentatively linked to the Roman urban development of Crocolana, located c.3km to the north-east of the site. However, the interpretation of the site is tentative at this stage based on the small-excavated sample.
Overall the preliminary investigation has confirmed the presence of an extensive and complex network of features which are indicative of an exploited and managed landscape. The results expand on the knowledge of the local historic landscape, notably of the Late Iron Age and Roman periods.