‘Offering’ Pots in Stone Castle Pits
Pre-Construct Archaeology Ltd undertook archaeological work at Stone Castle, located c. 1.5km to the south of Greenhithe Village. The work was commissioned by CgMs Consulting Ltd on behalf of Land Securities in advance of a proposed redevelopment of the site.
The site is situated on Boyn Hill gravels to the west and undivided, mainly Seaford Chalk to the east, sloping down from west to east from a highest level of 36m OD to 25m OD. To the east of the site, the Seaford Chalk had been cryoturbated, with crevices being silted in with natural brickearth. This resulted in a rather interesting ‘zebra’ striped effect across the open area of investigation. The site lies c. 2km south of the River Thames with a vista across to the West Thurrock Marshes into Essex. The land has been under plough during the last 150 years. This followed its earlier use as a park or hunting estate. The route from London to Rochester passes to the north, and excavations at a Stone Castle chalk pit to the north-east found evidence of a [pg3]Romano-British settlement, including a cemetery. Other artefacts of Roman date have been found in the vicinity, including a number of burials.
Area A (above), immediately to the north of Stone Castle covered c. 6000 square metres. The machine stripping revealed a Late Iron Age to Early Roman site, with initial pottery dating suggesting activity from c. 100 BC to AD 80 with a possible earlier Bronze Age ringditch.
Area B, to the northwest of Stone Castle covered an area of 625 square metres, with just three features of an as yet undetermined prehistoric date.
The Bronze Age ringditch enclosure located in the east of Area A constitutes the earliest evidence of occupation, measuring approximately 20m across. Unfortunately, only half of this feature was revealed as it extended beyond the limit of excavation.
The Late Iron Age period was represented by a series of rectangular and rounded pits which proved to be incredibly rich in finds material and included several ritually ‘killed’ pottery vessels and one complete pot. These features are likely to represent deliberately backfilled grain storage pits, with the ceramics being interred as ‘offerings’ for both the successful storage and germination of seed corn. One burial was also discovered relating to this same period. The skeleton was in a crouched position with the head to the north in a west-facing direction and was accompanied by a polished grinding stone.
Between the Late Iron Age and Early Roman period, the site appears to have become more developed, with a series of separate field enclosures being established in the form of linear ditches. These contained both pottery and animal bone, and in one instance, several deliberately ‘killed’ vessels were also unearthed. A continuation in land usage is present in the form of further storage pits containing large amounts of pottery and further deliberately placed ‘goods,’ including a horse skull at the base of one of the features.
The Early Roman period is represented by the introduction of a drainage ditch and a gully, which also contained a large amount of broken pottery at its terminus. Further pits of an ovoid definition were also identified which again proved to be rich in finds. Recoveries included a Hod Hill type brooch of first-century date and a large amount of wall plaster, suggestive of inhabitation in the immediate vicinity.
Alexis Haslam