Land at Brierley Paddocks, West Mersea, Essex

Between 14th and 18th December 2020 Oxford Archaeology East carried out a small (0.1ha) area excavation at Brierley Paddocks, West Mersea, Essex. This was one of two areas designated for excavation within a 9ha development area where geophysical survey and trial trenching had identified archaeological remains of prehistoric and Roman date.
The excavations uncovered an unurned cremation burial, a single pit and a series of ditches forming part of a wider field system. The only dateable finds recovered were small quantities of Middle/Late Bronze Age pottery. Whilst the cremation burial and pit seem very likely to be of Bronze Age date, the ditches followed the same alignment as nearby historic field boundaries recorded on first edition Ordnance Survey mapping, and it is uncertain whether they represent part of a prehistoric field systems or relate to much later, post-medieval/early modern land use.