Iron Age and Roman Settlement Remains near Tort Hill, Sawtry

During November and December 1993, the Archaeological Field Unit of Cambridgeshire County Council undertook an archaeological assessment of land along the A1 trunk road, which follows the line of Roman Ermine Street, just to the north of Sawtry. The work was carried out on behalf of the Transportation department of Cambridgeshire County Council.
On the west side of the A1 (centred on TL 1720 8460), a small ditched enclosure and various pits and ditches were revealed, probably representing a farmstead. Pottery from some of these features indicate that settlement initially occurred in the period immediately before the Roman invasion of Britain in the first century AD, and possibly continued well into the Roman period.
To the east of the A1 (centred on TL 1720 8485), a large number of pits, ditches, and other features were recorded. These produced a large quantity of, mainly, second to fourth century Roman pottery, as well as iron objects, coins, and other domestic refuse. These deposits probably represent a peripheral area of a Roman roadside settlement, where activities such as rubbish disposal, and perhaps small scale industrial processing, took place.