HOLYWELL FORD, OXFORD

Wall foundations of at least two phases of earlier nill structures were discovered in the
area ilrr¡ediately to the north of the present builcling. The walls appear to be built on top
of deep deposit of gravel and olay which ntay represent part of the original millbank.
The existence of a very large feature, the bottom of which contained waterlogged
deposits, was located to tlìe north and east of the mìll. Parts of the feature had only been
fille.d in as recently as the l8th century, but some of the lower fills contained only
nedieval pottery. It would seern likely fronr its size and character that this feature
represents the backfilled mill pond.
A large culving ditch, the top o1'which had again been backfilled in the 18th cerìtury, was
found in tlie area of the orchard, some 35m to the east of the nill. This featLrre also
produced a few shercls ol'ureclieval pottery froul some of the ìower 1'ìlls , bì.tt no datable
fìnds were retrieved 1'ror¡ the bottom thìrd of the ditch, which contained waterlogged
de¡rosits. The date and h¡nction of this feature is therelo|e unclear, bUt it is possibly that
it was associatecl with the ntill (rerha¡:s as an overflow ditch for the ntill 1;ond or streanr).