KAS Newsletter, Issue 68, Spring 2006
Written By KAS
nneewwss ll ee tt tt ee rr K E N T A RC H A E O LO G I C A L S O C I E T Y
Issue number 68 Spring 2006
www.kentarchaeology.org.uk
Inside
2-3
Cuxton Handaxes
4-5
Ice Age Network
New Books
KASWebsites
Library Acquisitions
6-7
What’s On
8-9
Notice Board
10-11
Ringlemere 2005
12-13
Shorne Heritage
Project
Letters to the Editor
Gravesend Archives
14-15
St Mildred’s Tannery
16
Strawberry Wood
Culvert
TH G I A N T H A N D A X E S
from Cuxton
SYMBOLIC
CAPACITY
COMPATIBLE
WITH
EXPRESSION
THROUGH
LANGUAGE?
Background
In August 2006 two small test pits were dug at
the Lower Palaeolithic site at Cuxton Rectory.
The site was first identified in 1889 when, as
reported by George Payne (Collectanea Cantiana
1893), “on entering the rectory garden I picked up
a fine Palaeolithic flint celt that lay upon the
bank”. Further finds within a few yards of the
same spot led Payne to conclude that the site represented
a Palaeolithic settlement. But it was not
until the 1960s that the importance of the site was
fully recognised. Tester (1965) re c o v e red an
incredible 210 handaxes from three small test
pits, as well as numerous cores, flake-tools and
waste flakes. The finds came from a thin bed of
river gravel close beneath the ground surface at
c.17m OD. Typologically, the collection was dominated
by pointed handaxes. Therefore Tester concluded
that the site was probably of the same age
as the Middle Gravels at Swanscombe, despite
the great difference in elevation and the presence
at Cuxton of ficrons and cleavers, types absent at
Swanscombe, and the relative abundance of
flake-tools.
Further work took place in the 1980s on the
opposite side of Rochester Road (Cruse et al.
1987). Closer attention was paid to the river gravel
that contained the artefacts. Lithological analysis
confirmed it was laid down by the Medway,
and, controversially, it was correlated with the
Binney Gravel on the Hoo, attributed [at that time]
to only around 45,000 BP. Contradictory dating
(besides the abundance of mint or fresh handax-
CUXTON GIANT H A N D A X E S
Spring 2006 2
COVER : The ficron.
ABOVE : Location and layout.
LEFT : David Norwood watching excavation of
his front lawn.
Below : Sondage section with cleaver in situ
and holes left by other handaxe finds.
OPPOSITE PAGE : The cleaver
es!) was provided by TL-dating of loam capping
the gravel to at least 100,000 BP. Overall, the second
phase of work did little to resolve the date of
the site.
Therefore, as part of the Aggregates Levy
Medway Valley Palaeolithic Project, a small reinvestigation
of Cuxton took place. The main objective
was merely to dig the smallest possible
trenches to gain access to sand-rich deposits for
optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating. If
in the course of this work we recovered further
w e l l - p rovenanced artefacts, that would be a
bonus.
We were kindly permitted by the present
vicar, Rev. Roger Knight, to dig a test pit to the
north of the rectory drive. And we dug a second
test pit at 21 Rochester Road, directly opposite,
which produced the spectacular finds discussed
below. We, and the archaeological community,
are forever indebted to David and Sarah Norwood
for allowing us to excavate on their front lawn.
Two giant handaxes
After clearing away overburden of turf and
made ground, a sondage was carefully dug by
machine. The upper levels comprised fluvial
sands, lacking artefacts. About 60cm down, the
sands came down onto a more gravelly layer. As
this level was being reached, the scrape of the
machine bucket revealed the butt of a large handaxe
in the bottom of the trench, with the tip
buried by the recently disturbed spoil. Upon
retrieval, the handaxe was found to be a monstrous
ficron, 307mm long, making it the second
longest handaxe known in Britain (after a pointed
specimen from Furze Platt found in 1919 —
Wymer 1968: 224). Besides its extreme size, the
workmanship is exquisite, almost flamboyant. The
a p p roaches to tranchet-sharpening in each of
these contrasting types of handaxe is inconceivable
other than as a finishing touch to deliberately
create a much sharper cutting edge than would
result from continuing the more natural bifacial
knapping pattern orthogonal to the main axis of
each tool. If one accepts that these handaxes
were deliberately shaped into a desired form,
then, many would argue (eg. Davidson & Noble
1993), this reflects a symbolic capacity compatible
with expression through language.
Dating and cultural
development
We don’t yet know the date of the site.
Preliminary indications of the OSL sampling are
for a final Lower Palaeolithic date, between
200,000 and 300,000 BP. It is beginning to look as
if this period was characterised by an increasing
diversity of handaxe types, and specifically the cooccurrence
of cleavers and ficrons at many sites.
Perhaps, the Lower Palaeolithic is not, therefore,
the period of stasis that is often suggested, but
incorporates a trajectory of cultural, cognitive and
behavioural development that is continued into,
and through, the Middle Palaeolithic.
Acknowledgements
I am very grateful to David and Sarah
Norwood for permitting us to excavate; to Martin
Bates, Gilbert Marshall, Marcus Hatch and James
Cole for help with the fieldwork; and to Lis Dyson
(of Kent County Council) and Peter Kendall and
Helen Keeley (of English Heritage) for their support
of the Cuxton fieldwork and the Medway
Valley Palaeolithic Project.
References
Cruse, R.J. 1987. Further investigation of the
Acheulian site at Cuxton. Archaeologia Cantiana 104:
39–81.
Davidson, I. & Noble, W. 1993. Tools and language in
human evolution. In K.R. Gibson & T. Ingold (eds),
Tools, Language and Cognition in Human Evolution,
363–388. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Tester, P.J. 1965. An Acheulian site at Cuxton.
Archaeologia Cantiana 80: 30–60.
Wymer, J.J. 1968. Lower Palaeolithic Archaeology in
Britain as represented by the Thames Valley. John
Baker, London.
Web-links: Medway Valley Project:
http://www.arch.soton.ac.uk/Research/MedwayValle
y/welcome/index.php
A more detailed report on these new discoveries is
published in April in Lithics 25: Essays in Honour of
R.J. MacRae, a special issue of the Annual Journal
of the Lithic Studies Society
Francis Wenban-Smith
(Department of Archaeology,
University of Southampton)
narrowed waist of the ficron is approximately
two-thirds towards the butt. From the waist to the
tip, both sides are straight and perfectly symmetrical.
As a final flourish, one side of the tip has
been finished with two tranchet blows, creating a
sharp edge extending 75mm, without affecting
the overall symmetry.
A sharp-edged flake was also found, wellembedded
in the section, and removal of this was
left until the section had been recorded and OSL
sampling completed. Upon excavation it quickly
transpired that we were dealing not with a flake,
but another giant handaxe, this time a cleaver
179mm long by 134mm wide at its widest point
and with a transverse cutting blade 110mm wide.
The workmanship is again extraordinary. Despite
the large size, there are no mistakes such as step
fractures across the wide expanse of the faces.
The cross-sections along the long axis and across
it are perfectly symmetrical. The cleaver edge,
straight and perfectly orthogonal to the long axis,
has been achieved by two immaculate opposing
tranchet blows, one from each edge. The cleaver
came from exactly the same thin gravel band as
the ficron, and was found within one foot of it.
Language in the Lower
Palaeolithic?
What can we make of these finds? There is
debate about whether Palaeolithic handaxes genuinely
reflect deliberately made types, or whether
the varied types most analysts perceive are the
accidental by-product of the application of a general
bifacial knapping approach to flint nodules of
varying shape. As a relatively experienced flint
knapper I can confidently assert that, particularly
at this scale, the clear point, straight edges and
symmetrical waist of the ficron would not arrive
except by design. Above all, the use of diverse
3 Spring 2006
Spring 2006 4
The NIAN is an Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund initiative administered
by English Heritage. It seeks to strengthen contacts between, and
create an inclusive and supportive network for everyone interested in
the Ice Age. The initiative focuses on the Pleistocene (Ice Age) remains to be
found in England’s sand and gravel quarries, including sediments containing
fossils relating to past environments as well as archaeological evidence for
some of the country’s earliest human inhabitants.
Although a resource of great importance for science and of widespread
public interest (eg mammoths, Neanderthals, climate change), these remains
have often not received the attention devoted to more recent environmental
and archaeological evidence.
Sand and gravel quarrying has benefited geology, palaeontology and
archaeology enormously. Deep excavations for commercial quarrying have
revealed geological sequences, the fossil remains of plants and animals, and
the stone tools of our ancestors – the raw materials needed to reconstruct
the Ice Age world. Quarrying, however, is also a destructive process – much
is lost without record – and the benefits of aggregates quarrying to reconstructing
the Ice Age world cannot be realised unless the fossils and archaeological
remains are recorded. The challenge of monitoring these quarries for
significant finds can only be achieved through partnership: between geologists,
palaeontologists and archaeologists, between professionals and amateurs,
but most of all with the aggregates industry. It is the quarry workers
themselves who, day in and day out, have the best chance of making the
important discoveries. The inclusive grouping of organisations and individuals
sharing the goal of bringing the Ice Age world to light will be known as
the National Ice Age Network.
The NIAN currently operates from regional centres at Royal Holloway
University of London and the University of Birmingham, with responsibilities
for research and monitoring in the south-east and Midlands respectively.
Information from www.iceage.bham.ac.uk
T H E N AT I O N A L I C E A G E N E T W O R K ( N I A N )
C A N T E R B U RY A R C H A E O L O G I C A L S O C I E T Y R E S E A R C H A N D P U B L I C AT I O NG R A N T S
N E W B O O K S
Images of Horton Kirby Paper Mill by the Horton Kirby and
South Darenth Local History Society. £6.00 (+ p&p).
For the better part of two centuries, Horton Kirby Paper Mill dominated South Darenth, not just
physically through its buildings, but also economically and socially as the major local employer.
This book provides a selection of images from its foundation to the present, tracing its
g rowth through Ordnance Survey maps and photographs of both the mill and the families connected
to the workings. The final chapter is an account by an apprentice in the mill in the 1960’s
of his working days.
Available from Mr K Saunderson, ‘Appledore’, Rays Hill, Horton Kirby, Dart f o rd DA4 9DB. Te l :
01322 862056.
The Society has limited funds with which to support individuals researching
any aspect of the archaeology and history of the Canterbury district.
It is envisaged that grants would not normally exceed £500 each and
would be awarded annually. Preference would be given to work resulting in
publication.
Please apply in writing to the Honorary Secretary of the Grants Committee
as soon as possible, and in any case not later than 30 June 2006. Your letter
should mention your qualifications, the nature and length of your research,
the amount you are applying for, any additional funding anticipated and proposals
for publication. You may be asked to name a referee with whom the
Committee making the grants could consult. If successful, you would be
expected to account for the money spent and give a copy of any article, pamphlet
etc. to the Society’s library.
For further details please contact the Honorary Secretary of the Grants
Committee:
Mrs C M Short, 3 Little Meadow, Upper Harbledown, Canterbury CT2 9BD.
from OS maps, population figures 1801 to 1921, Roman pottery of Kent, Kent subsidy
roll 1334/5.
CONTENTS OF kentarchaeology.ac
This site covers five broad areas:-
eArticles. Posting of original articles on Kentish matters, subject to approval of the
society’s Editor, supported by his editorial advisers. A dozen such are already posted
on a variety of subjects.
eBooks. Publication online of complete books, approved and sponsored by KAS
Publications Committee. A book on Hadlow town is the first such. (See advert on
page 15).
Records. At present posted are:- Names and dates of Canterbury Consistory Court
wills; Kentish Dialect and Provincialisms.
Collections Data Bases. Catalogues of Library Bookstock; KAS Visual Records;
Gordon Ward collection; KAS document collection at CKA.
Researchers. List of researchers in history and archaeology willing to undertake
paid work.
CLICK ON TO OUR WEBSITES, AND GIVE US YOUR
VIEWS ON HOW THEY MAY BE IMPROVED TO GIVE
BETTER SERVICE TO YOU.
5 Spring 2006
Over the last five years, enthusiastic KAS members have been hard at work building
up a presence for the Society on the world-wide internet through the Society’s
two websites, kentarchaeology.org.uk and kentarchaeology.ac.
The ‘org’ site is primarily devoted to information about the Society, its constitution,
activities, meetings, lectures etc, together with sections affording researchers
increasing access to some of the Society’s records, while the ‘ac’ site provides on
line publishing of articles and books about Kentish history and archaeology, together
with searchable databases of the KAS library’s books, visual records and other
collections. These facilities aim not only to provide ready and easily available services
to members, supplementing contacts by other methods, but also to enable the
Society to reach out, on a national and world-wide basis, to non-members who may
be interested in the History and Archaeology of the Ancient County of Kent, by
offering access to the Society’s accumulated knowledge and expertise.
The summary below of the content of the Society’s websites should demonstrate
that the Society has made a very respectable start on the process of entering the
internet, and may help to encourage members to take advantage of the facilities
digitally provided. It is certainly the intention to continue to develop further facilities
available through computer access, complementary to contacts with members
by other methods.
CONTENTS OF kentarchaeology.org.uk
This site covers four broad areas:-
About KAS. What the Society does, operational structure, grants available,
membership issues.
Activities and Information. Meetings diary, conference notices, news items,
copies of back issues of the KAS Newsletter for downloading.
Publications. Information on KAS publications offered for sale; monograph series,
new Kent Records series, occasional volumes, Archaeologia Cantiana.
R e s e a rc h . Lists and transcripts of re c o rds of various types of interest to
researchers on Kent history and archaeology, genealogy and family history, including:-
visual records from the KAS collection, monumental inscriptions from churches
and churchyards, transcripts and indexes of wills, Kent place names extracted
Otford in Pictures. (Otford and District Historical Society).
Crown Yard, Canterbury, First Police Station.
Excavation of the Roman Fort at Reculver (Brian Philp).
Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and History. Proceedings. Vol XLI P.1 2005.
Somerset Archaeology and Nat.History. Vol 148 (2005).
Anglo Saxon Cemetery at Eastry. (Brian Philp and Peter Keller).
Prehistoric and Monastic Site at Minster, Sheppey.
Discovery of Archaeological Site at Hayes, Kent.
Scratch Dials in Kentish Churches (Compact disc; Trevor Copestake).
Lincolnshire History and Archaeology.Vol 38 2003.
Bygone Kent Vol 26 Nos 11, 12 and Vol 27 No.1.
Britannia Vol XXXVI 2005.
Journal of Roman Studies Vol XCV 2005.
Archaeologia Cambrensis Vol 152 2003.
Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeology Vol 5 2005.
Interim report on excavations, Ringlemere Farm 2004.
Prehistoric Society Proceedings Vol 71 2005.
Antiquaries Journal Vol 85 2005.
Medieval Archaeology Vol XLIX 2005.
Montgomeryshire Collections Vol 93 2005.
Wye Local History Vol 1 No4 2003
Leicestershire Archaeology and History Society Vol 79 2003.
KAS ON THE INTERNET;
WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT
Available now to
download at www.kentarchaeology.ac
Sir Edward Dering, 1st bart., of Sur renden Dering
and his ‘Booke of Expences’ - 1617-1628
By Leatitia Yeandle, Curator of Manuscripts Emerita,
Folger Shakespeare Librar y, Washington DC.
Literatim transcription of his account book when he was married first
to Elizabeth Tufton and second to Anne Ashburnham. Detailed entries
of the expenses he incurred in running his household, managing his
estates, carrying out his official responsibilities and indulging his
interests. M.P. for Hythe, a muster-master, a member of the Privy
Chamber, and Treasurer for Household Compositions in Kent. A rising
antiquary, buying books and copying records. Enjoyed the theatre and
liked to dress well.
Archaeologia Aeliana Vol XXXIV.
London and Middlesex Archaeological Soc. Vol 55 2004.
150th Summer Meeting of R.A.I., Channel Islands 2004.
Transactions of the Lower Medway Archaeologica Research Group 2003.
Lost Railways of Kent (Leslie Oppitz).
Jahrbuch des Romisch-Germansichen Zentral-Museum Mainz No 51 Teil 1 & Teil 2, 2004.
Journal of the British Archaeological Association Vol 155 2003.
Materielhefte zur Archaeology im Baden-Wurttemburg Stuttgart.
Fornvannen; Swedish Antiquarian Research. 2005 1/2/3/4.
Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol 77 2005.
Wiltshire Studies Vol 99.
St Andrew’s Church, Wickhambreaux (Dick Bolton).
The Annunciation Window at St Andrew’s Church (Dick Bolton).
Farningham and its Mills (Hilary Harding).
Journal of the English Place Name Society Vol 37 (2005).
Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland Vol 133.
Cornish Archaeology Vol 41- 42.
Archaeology of the Channel Tunnel Railway.
Hampshire Studies Vol 60.
Post Medieval Archaeology Vol 39 p2.
Journal of the Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire Vol 154.
Woolhope Naturalist and Field Club Vol L pIII.
ADDITIONS TO LIBRARY November 2005 to January 2006
Spring 2006 6
enclosed flyer for details and how to book your place. Remember –
the last two conferences were sold out!
KAS Charing One-day Conference
Historic Buildings of Kent
14 October in Charing Church Barn, 10.30am – 4.30pm
Due to unforeseen circumstances the previous ‘coastal’ theme of this
day has been changed and we will now be looking at historic buildings
within the county. Speakers will include Geoffrey Harvey, David
Carder and Mike Cockett. Cost is £5.00, to include coffee and tea. A
booking form for this conference is enclosed.
OTHER EVENTS AROUND KENT
CONFERENCES
Bronze Age Connections: Cultural Contact in
Prehistoric Europe
The Dover Bronze Age Boat T rust: Second Conference
Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 October
at the Dover Harbour Board Cruise Terminal, Dover .
To mark the occasion of the Ringlemere gold cup being placed on
display alongside the Dover Bronze Age Boat in Dover Museum, a
two-day conference will take place in Dover in October 2006. The
theme is ‘Bronze Age Connections: Cultural Contact in Prehistoric
Europe’, in celebration of these two iconic symbols of Bronze Age life.
The symposium will bring together a wide range of scholars from
many different specialisms to explore the economic, social and symbolic
nature of cultural contact along the NW European seaboard in
prehistory and the practical means by which cross-channel relations
could be maintained. More details can be found at http://www.can-
KAS EVENTS
KAS Summer Social Meeting
Boughton Monchelsea Place, near Maidstone
Thursday 15 June
Members are invited to join in a tour of this 16th century stone-built
manor house, which overlooks its own deer park and fifteen miles of
unspoilt countryside. Walled gardens and a lake add to its beautiful
setting. Picnic lunches may be eaten in the gardens. Small groups
will alternate between a tour of the house and the church, after which
cream tea will be served. Full details of times will be sent with tickets.
Cost is £10 and a booking form is included in this issue.
KAS Churches Committee Visits
Monday 19 June
St Dunstan’s Church and the Congregational Church, at
Cranbrook
You are invited to visit these two Cranbrook churches. Meet at 6.45
for 7pm, at St.Dunstan’s. Cost £2 (students £1). Tea & biscuits £1 per
person. A booking form for this visit is enclosed and return by 10
June would be appreciated.
Saturday 30 September
All Saints, Eastchurch and Harty, at Sheppey.
You are invited to visit these two Sheppey churches. Meet at 1.45 for
2pm, at Eastchurch. Cost £2 (students £1). Substantial tea £3.50. A
booking form for this visit is enclosed and return by 15 September
would be appreciated.
KAS Summer Excursion 2006
Return to Northumbria, 12 – 17 June inclusive
Last chance to join - only a few places still available
After too long an interval, the Society plans to visit Northumbria for
its 2006 excursion, which, for one year only, will last for six days.
Since our last visit to Northumbria, many new sites, from the Roman
period to the nineteenth century, have become available; for example,
Segedunum (where the Wall meets the North Sea), Cherryburn, the
birthplace of the wood engraver and naturalist Thomas Bewick, and
the revolutionary Cragside House.
For further details and a booking form contact the Hon.Excursions
Secretary, Joy Saynor on saynor@shorehamkent.wanadoo.co.uk.
KAS Place-Names Committee Day Conference
Saturday 15 July, 10am – 3.30pm at Snodland
The Place-Names Committee are holding another Day Conference
with completely new examples. The speakers will be Dr Paul Cullen
and Dr David Parsons, the Director of the Institute for Names Studies,
University of Nottingham. David’s talks will be ‘Reintroduction to
English Place-Names’ and ‘Place-Names and the Church’, while Paul
will speak on ‘Current Research in Kent’ and ‘Place-Names in and
around Snodland’, where the conference will be held. Please see the
W H AT ’ S ON > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
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ABOVE: The Dover Bronze Age Boat under excavation.
Our guide will be Peter Clark FSA, deputy-director of the Canterbury
Archaeological Trust. Between 1978 and 1985 he spent every summer
season excavating sites of many periods throughout the islands.
The tour will visit many of the great sites of European archaeology.
It will be based in the Norse town of Kirkwall and visit both Orkney
mainland and the small islands of Hoy and Rousay. Included will be
Birsay, seat of Norse power in Orkney, the round church of Orphir,
St. Magnus in Kirkwall, the important Neolithic village of Skara Brae
and as many other sites as can be fitted into the time available.
We travel direct from Gatwick to Kirkwall, with independent travel
to Gatwick.
There will be rough walking and ever-changing weather, so stout
walking shoes and waterproofs are essential. The cost is £825 and
the group is limited to 30.
For Orkneys booking form apply to: CAMINO JOURNEYS Ltd., PO Box
292, Broadstairs, CT10 2WY.
National Archaeology Week 15th – 23rd July
An annual nation-wide event organized by the Council for British
Archaeology and the Young Archaeologists’ Club. If your Museum,
Society, Club or venue is holding an event please let the editor know,
so that it can be included in the July edition of the Newsletter.
National Archaeology Week at Shorne Woods Country Park,
near Gravesend.
Excavation during the whole week of the medieval site of
Randall Manor .
Saturday 22 July
The medieval theme continues, with craftworkers, musicians and
dancers and lots of hands-on creative activities for all the
family. Guided tours of the excavation.
Crofton Roman Villa, Orpington
Special Guided Tours for Societies
Sunday afternoons from April to October 2006
Visit the Roman Villa at Orpington, the remains of ten rooms within
a covered building, with graphic displays and Touch Table of Roman
artefacts. Special offer to pre-booked societies – a guided tour by
the excavation director, Brian Philp. Normal admission charges
(80p/50p) plus donation to Kent Archaeological Rescue Unit.
Information and booking from KARU, 11 Penshurst Green, Bromley
BR2 9DG, tel: 020 8460 1442.
EVENTS ELSEWHERE
Ruskin Public History Discussion Group
A Militant pit – what made Betteshanger colliery in Kent
special? The case of the 1960 stay-down strike
Saturday 10 June at Ruskin College, Walton Street, Oxford OX1
2HE. Coffee at 10.30am, session starts at 11. Finish by lunchtime.
7 Spring 2006
t e r b u ry t ru s t . c o . u k / c o n f e rence.htm. For booking, contact Denise
Ryeland, DBABT Conference Co-ord i n a t o r, Tours of the Realm,
Hammond House, Limekiln Street, Dover CT17 9EE; telephone 01304
240374; email bronzeageboat@btopenworld.com. Accommodation
booking is available, with special conference accommodation rates,
t h rough the Dover Visitor Information Centre, telephone 01304
245400
TALKS & LECTURES
Bexley Archaeological Group
18 May
The New Medieval Gallery in the Museum of London Hedley Swain.
In the Bexley & Sidcup Conservative Club, 19 Station Road, Sidcup at
8pm. Non-members welcome, admission £3.
British Archaeological Association Meetings
3 May
Worcester Cathedral: architecture and historiography Dr Ute Engel
All meetings are held at 5pm in the rooms of the Society of
Antiquaries, Burlington House, Piccadilly. Non-members are very welcome
but are asked to make themselves known to the Hon.Director on
arrival and to sign the visitors book.
Loose Area History Society
8 May
Kent Women – Famous, Infamous and Unsung Chris McCooey
13 June
Guided Perambulation of Rolvenden
11 July
Guided Perambulation of Lenham
9 October
History of the Victoria Cross Lt.Col. Mike Martin
13 November
The Caged Lady Lee Ault
11 December
Shakespeare’s International Globe Anne Carter
All meetings are held at Loose Infant School and start at 7.30pm. All
welcome. Admission £1.50, pay at the door. For more details tel:
01622 741198.
OTHER EVENTS
Field trip to the ISLES of ORKNEY 3 – 8 July 2006
In July 2006 the Friends of Canterbury Archaeological Trust are planning
a six-day trip to Orkney, just off the north coast of Scotland. The
tour will encompass some of the best-preserved and spectacular
archaeological monuments of all periods anywhere in Europe, set in a
beautiful landscape of gently rolling islands, seascapes and astonishing
wildlife.
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historic buildings (excepting churches) in Kent, to
promote and undertake:
(a) study of their history and archaeology;
(b) publication of such study;
(c) the spread of knowledge of, and interest in
them. These are to be implemented by various
The inaugural meeting of the KAS Historic
Buildings Committee was held on 21 January.
Christopher Proudfoot agreed to take on the
role of Chairman, and Mike Clinch the role of
S e c re t a ry. The Te rms of Reference of the
Committee were agreed, as follows: In relation to
liaison, research and education activities.
The Committee met again on 18 March,
when aspects of its remit, method of working and
programme of activities were discussed. As soon
as plans for activities are a little firmer, more information
will be provided.
MEMBERSHIP MATTERS
Thank you to those who have recently renewed their membership. If you haven’t yet renewed you will shortly be receiving a reminder letter. If you pay
by banker’s order please check your statements to make sure that you are paying the correct amount only once a year.
The current subscription is £10 for students under 21; £20 single membership (optional £15 if you are a pensioner and have been a member of the society
for more than ten years); £25 for two adults living at the same address (optional £23 if you are both pensioners and have been members for over ten
years). Those who have been members for over fifty years (ie joined before 1956) are entitled to free membership – a reward for loyalty and long service.
We are pleased to welcome the following new members:
JOINT MEMBERS
Austin, Mr D, and Mrs, 25 Fairway Avenue, Folkestone, Kent, CT19 5LG
Brazier, Mr P, and Mrs, Lenham Court, Old Ham Lane, Lenham, Maidstone, Kent, ME17 2LS
Brown, Mr K, and Mrs, 20 Cripple Street, Loose, Maidstone, Kent, ME15 6B
Doel, Dr G L, and Mrs , Owl House, 3 Charlton Terrace, Tonbridge, Kent, TN9 1PG
Loveday, Mr R, and Mrs, Old Pound Manor, The Street, Newington, Folkestone, Kent, CT18 8AU
Pullen, Mr A J, and Mrs, Bartlett Farmhouse, Great Chart, Ashford, Kent, TN23 3DW
INSTITUTIONAL SUBSCRIBERS
West P I O, Mr, House Record, 16 London Road, Sittingbourne, Kent, ME10 1NA
JUNIOR MEMBERS
Brazier, Mr P, Lenham Court, Old Ham Lane, Lenham, Maidstone, Kent, ME17 2LS
ORDINARY MEMBERS
Allen, Mrs P, Walnut Tree Cottage, Lympne, Hythe, Kent, CT21 4JP
Baker, Mrs A, Bounds Pitch, Much Marcle, Ledbury, Herefordshire, HR8 2P
Ball, Mr J, 18 Portman Park, Tonbridge, Kent, TN9 1LL
Cook, Mr C, The Old Post Office, Ruckinge, Ashford, Kent, TN26 2NY
Cooke, Miss L, Hill Side, Broadstreet Hill, Hollingbourne, Maidstone, Kent, ME17 1QY
Davies, Mr A J, Partridge Farm, Water Lane, Harrietsham, Maidstone, Kent, ME17 1LL
Edwards, Miss S C, 70 Hilton Close, Faversham, Kent, ME13 8NN
Hodgkinson, Mr N, 6 Lake Street, Rockingham, Western Australia, WA6168, Australia
Hurst, Mr R W, 16 Kewlands, Maidstone, Kent, ME14 5R
Johnson, Mr C, Collingwood Farm, Hawkhurst, Kent, TN18 4RR
King, Mr D J, 5 Mallard Way, Edenbridge, Kent, TN8 6BJ
Klevnas, Ms A, Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, CB2 3DZ
Louw, Mrs C, 34 North Road, Hythe, Kent, CT21 5DA
Macklin, Mrs P J, 22 Stoney Road, Dunkirk, Faversham, Kent, ME13 9TN
Mann, Mr L W, 7 Homefield Close, Swanley, Kent, BR8 7J
Mascall, Mr G E C, 39 Queen’s Road, Devizes, Wiltshire, SN10 5H
Mountfield, Mr P, Marchants, Church Street, Seal, Sevenoaks, Kent, TN15 0AR
Owlett, Miss C A, Absaloms Oast Cottage, Underriver, Sevenoaks, Kent, TN15 0SL
Parris, Mr S J C, 21 Christy Road, Biggen Hill, Westerham, Kent, TN16 3DE
Paulick, Mr M R, 76 Creekside Drive, San Rafael, CA 94903-1055, California, USA
Ratcliffe, Mr J, 33 Bower Mount Road, Maidstone, Kent, ME16 8A
Stringer, Mr P, 2 Searchlight Bungalows, Ware, Near Ash, Canterbury, Kent, CT3 2NA
Thomas, Mrs D, 21 Bayham Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN2 5HR
Vass, Mrs D, 2 Westhorpe Mews, Byfield, Daventry, Northants, NN11 6U
For all correspondence relating to membership please contact Mrs Shiela Broomfield, KAS Membership, 8 Woodview Crescent, Hildenborough,
Tonbridge TN11 9HD. Tel: 01732 838698. Email: membership@kentarchaeology.org or s.broomfield@dialpipex.com.
Y O U A N D Y O U R SOCIETY
KENT HISTORIC BUILDINGS COMMITTEE
Spring 2006 8
COPY DEADLINE FOR THE NEXT
During the winter the Fieldwork Committee has
s u p p o rted the KAS History and Arc h a e o l o g y
Show and the Metal Detectorist Conservation
Day. Both these events, which took place in Maidstone
Museum, received good attendance from the public and
fee-paying metal detectorists on their day.
Ringlemere has been the site of most interest, with
some fine artefacts found by Keith Parfitt and his band
of volunteers at this most exposed of Kentish locations.
For further details see the article on pages 10 & 11. The
first draft report on the site, including the gold cup, has
gone to the British Museum and should be published for
the October Bronze Age show in Dover.
Reports on the Abbey Farm, Minster excavation are
being finalised and prepared for print, including the
final text for Building Four in this years Archaeologia
Cantiana, and for Building Six, which is in the final
stages for publishing. To date there are 225 boxes of
wall plaster catalogued by context, and 220 still to be
catalogued. Altogether there are in the region of 7000
pieces of plaster.
Excavations for 2006 include the expected two week
dig at Ringlemere at the end of May (details on this
page), the continuation of the East Farleigh Roman Villa
excavation starting after Easter (contact Albert Daniels,
tel 07966 172807 if interested), and the Lenham
A rchaeological Groups excavation of a possible
Medieval Manor just outside the village during the
weekend 22 to 24 April (contact Lesley Feakes, tel
01622 858837 or email lmdfeakes@tiscali.co.uk).
Mike Howard (Sec)
FIELDWORK COMMITTEE
A SPECIAL OPPORTUNITY FOR MEMBERS IN 2006
9 Spring 2006
Archaeologia
Cantiana For Sale
A run from 1980 to 2005, including
Memorial volumes for 1993 and
2001, plus two volumes for 1984,
1988 and 1993, a total of 30 volumes
altogether. Price £125.00.
Also available, 1927, 1935, 1953,
1964, 1972, 1976, 1977 and 1978 at
a cost of £4.00 each.
Please contact 01732 463659
or email
hengistthegnome@hotmail.com and
mark the subject as ‘Arch Cants’.
We are pleased to announce a special opportunity for KAS members to participate in the final phase of excavation at
the Ringlemere site in early summer 2006.
The site first came to attention with the discover y, by Cliff Bradshaw, of the now famous Ringlemere Bronze Age Gold
Cup in 2001. After several seasons of excavation, sponsored by the British Museum and by Cliff, it has been established
that the site is one of international importance. It now appears that the Cup was not part of a Bronze Age round bar row
burial, but was placed inside a much earlier ditched enclosure, probably the first real ‘henge’ in Kent. Recent work has
shown that this henge, over 40 metres in diameter, enclosed a central mound (with a wooden structure, perhaps not
unlike the stone ‘cove’ at Avebury), which was, in turn, over part of a Neolithic settlement. Excavation has revealed one
of the largest collections (several thousand pieces) in south-east England, of ‘grooved ware’ potter y, dating from about
2600BC. More than twenty thousand struck flints have also been found. It is also clear that the site remained of signif -
icance for a very long time, with more than fifty burials of Anglo-Saxon date already having been found in the area
around the henge. For more detailed information see the article on page 10 and 11.
With funds from other sources running out, the KAS Fieldwork Committee has agreed to support one final two-week
period to provide an opportunity for members to work on this unique site. This session will run from 22 May to 4 June
this year, and will be supervised by Keith Parfitt and other staff from the Canterbury Archaeological T rust. Part of the
excavation will focus on the ditch terminals and area around the henge where votive deposits might be expected. Ther e
will be the opportunity for the most active members to participate in some serious digging and for the more genteel to
assist in finds preparation and recording.
There will not be any charge for participation in the dig, simply a registration fee of £10 to cover administrative
expenses, insurance etc.
It is expected that a maximum of 15 places will be available on site at any time and places will be allocated to those
registering an interest on a ‘first come, first served’ basis. It will be possible for members to attend for the whole twoweek
period or just one week (or even just the weekends). If you would like to take up this unique opportunity to work
on such an important site, you should register your interest as soon as possible. In the first instance please email Mike
Howard at mike.howard3@tesco.net or ring Mike on 01622 686972, or ring Chris Pout on 01227 860207.
ISSUE IS THURSDAY 1st JUNE
R I N G L E M E R E 2 0 0 5 -
Spring 2006 10
In 2005 the sixth excavation on the Bro n z e
Age barrow site at Ringlemere, near
Sandwich, took place. It was here that
the now famous Bronze Age gold cup had
been discovered by Cliff Bradshaw in 2001.
The new excavation, Trench 6, was funded
by the British Museum, the British Academy
and a generous donation from Cliff
B r a d s h a w. Supervisors from Canterbury
A rchaeological Trust led the team and were
joined by staff from the British Museum
during October, under Dr Stuart Needham.
Much of the digging was carried out by volunteers,
notably from Dover Arc h a e o l o g i c a l
G roup, several other local societies and the
A rchaeology Departments of various
Universities. Regular re p o rts on pro g re s s
again appeared in the ever- p o p u l a r
R i n g l e m e re Dire c t o r ’s Diary (see www. c a nt
e r b u ry t rust.co.uk ).
Trench 6 was located in the southw
e s t e rn sector of the barro w, with two
extensions to investigate further segments
of the enclosing barrow ditch. Overall, the
excavation lasted considerably longer than
planned due to the unexpected discovery of
a large number of important feature s ,
including Anglo-Saxon graves and 125 pre -
b a rro w, Neolithic features, all of which
re q u i red careful investigation. On site, the
jokes about “being here until Christmas”
became less and less amusing as the
weeks rolled by and on a cold, wet New
Years Day seemed decidedly silly! The
investigations were finally completed in
the middle of March 2006, with some highly
important results.
The Anglo-Saxon Cemetery
A few Anglo-Saxon graves had been
d i s c o v e red in 2004 but many more were
d i s c o v e red this season. Over 40 burials
w e re excavated. Most were inhumations,
but there were also several cre m a t i o n s .
ABOVE: Large grooved ware sherd.
BELOW: Ringlemere diggers hard at work.
THE D I G T H AT R E F U S E D T O E N D
11 Spring 2006
BELOW: Pre-barrow features.
F rom the grave-goods, the bulk seem to be
of fifth century date. Objects re c o v e re d
included glass vessels, beads, bro o c h e s ,
silver rings and pins, buckles and various
i ron objects. Some exceptionally import a n t
graves appear to be re p resented. All the
grave finds have been sent to the British
Museum, where they have been stabilized,
pending more detailed examination.
The Bronze Age Barrow
Another large portion of the turf core
of the prehistoric barrow was examined. A
v e ry substantial collection of pre h i s t o r i c
p o t t e ry and flintwork was re c o v e red. The
g reat bulk of this material, however,
appears to be derived from pre - b a rro w
occupation on the site (see below).
Two sections across the 5-6 metre -
wide ring-ditch enclosing the barro w
mound were cut. Excavation showed that
the ditch was almost two metres deep, but
as in previous seasons, it contained comparatively
few finds. The ditch seems to
have been completely silted and invisible
by the Iron Age-Roman period.
The Neolithic Grooved W a re
s e t t l e m e n t
P re s e rved below the barrow mound
was a buried soil and sealed below it were
about 125 cut-features, in the form of variously
sized hollows, pits, post-holes and
two sub-rectangular hearths. Collectively,
these remains provide clear evidence for
occupation on the site prior to the ere c t i o n
of the barrow mound. Associated Gro o v e d
Wa re pottery shows this occupation
o c c u rred during the late Neolithic period.
Trench 7
Since annual ploughing continues to
e rode the site, a seventh and final season
of excavation at Ringlemere is now being
planned for the early summer of 2006. It is
intended that this will investigate the last
p o rtion of the remaining barrow mound and
the entrance on the north side of the enclos
u re, where it is hoped that some significant
s t ru c t u res and/or deposits may be discove
red. The KAS is helping to sponsor the work
this year and all volunteers will be very welcome
(see page 9 of the Newsletter).
**Readers will also be interested to know
that the Ringlemere gold cup will be on display
at Dover Museum towards the end of the
y e a r.
Keith Parfitt, Canterbury Archaeological Tru s t
S t u a rt Needham,
Dept of Pre h i s t o ry and Europe,
British Museum
ABOVE: World War II bunker
BELOW: Volunteers hand-clearing rhododendron on archaeological features.
Spring 2006 12
S H O R N E W O O D S
H E R I TA G E P R O J E C T
Shorne Woods Country Park, a Site of Special
Scientific Interest and Area of Outstanding
Natural Beauty between Rochester and
Gravesend, is one of the most widely-used amenities
that Kent County Council own. Many visitors arrive
each year to enjoy walking, cycling or fishing, to follow
marked trails or simply explore the ancient woodland,
meadows and wetland. A new state-of-the-art, selfsustainable
visitor centre is due to open this summer,
housing a café and educational resources.
A recent Heritage Lottery Fund grant has been
awarded to the Park, enabling investigation, conservation
and interpretation of the historic environment. A
Community Archaeological Officer has been appointed
to co-ordinate work on the archaeological features
within the varied landscape. Your Newsletter editor
was delighted to have been offered this role.
Shorne contains archaeology of many periods,
from Mesolithic flint scatters to the remains of the modern
clay extraction industry which shaped the contours
of some of the Park. The medieval Randall Manor, likely
the original seat of the de Cobhams, lies hidden in the
woods, its fishponds gracefully dipping alongside the
house platform. On the high heathland, looking north to
the Thames and south to the Medway, is a probable
Bronze Age barrow, perhaps re-used as the footings for
a medieval post mill belonging to the Manor. Remnants
of World War II military structures cluster together, the
sound of passing traffic on the A2 echoing in the
bunkers, whilst the route of the former carriage drive
from Cobham Hall resounds with the chatter of walkers.
All these, and other features, will be investigated.
Our aim is to involve as many local people as possible
in the project. Over the coming months contact
will be made with history and archaeology groups,
schools, social clubs, children’s clubs; anyone that
might enjoy either practical experience ‘on the ground’,
or research into the various archaeological elements, is
very welcome. The eventual interpretation of the
archaeology, on boards and in leaflets, will add an extra
dimension to visitor’s enjoyment of the Park, providing
new opportunities for access and education.
The Park area is to be widely extended during
2007, when new land will be opened to the public with
rides and footpaths extending throughout, also linking
the Park to nearby Cobham Park, Ashenbank Wood,
Jeskyns Farm and Ranscombe Farm.
During National Archaeology Week, 15th – 23rd
July, some excavation of Randall Manor will take place,
and participation by interested local groups or individuals
will be encouraged. The Park will also host other
activities on Saturday 22nd July, based around a
medieval theme; living history, ‘make and do’ activities
for families, artefacts for handling and guided walks of
the archaeology.
For more information contact Lyn Palmer on 01622
696934 or Shorne Wood Country Park on 01424 823800.
pants in the excavations. The Society would be grateful for the
loan or donation of any photographs or negatives in the possession
of readers or others. Anything received would be carefully
looked after, with loans returned after copying, and postage
refunded.
The address for both requests for the book and for the sending
of any images for the archive is:
Victor Smith,
65 Stonebridge Road,
Northfleet, Kent DA11 9BA.
13 Spring 2006
The Gravesend Historical Society still has copies available of its
well-illustrated booklet ‘Vagniacis’, about the Romano-British
religious centre at Springhead. (Price is £4.25, including
postage. Cheque or postal order payable to Gravesend Historical
Society).
The Society is building up a photographic archive of the various
archaeological investigations which have taken place over the years
at Springhead and the Ebbsfleet Valley. Images of the excavations
and artefacts, as well as ‘social’ views, are being collected. Many
photographs were taken by visitors during open days or by partici-
G R AV E S E N D P U B L I C AT I O N A N D A R C H I V E
Dear Editor
Cattle droving in the early nineteenth century.
P J Ovenden in his article (issue no.67, Winter 2005/6), refers to a
late ‘Roman’ road from Wrotham on the Pilgrims Way (North Downs
Ridgeway) to Tunbridge Wells and beyond and quotes I D Margery in
Roman Ways of the Weald as his source.
Although we have evidence of a Roman cemetery just north of
Borough Green railway station, there is nothing to suggest a Roman road
in the vicinity of the village and Margery does not mention it. It is true
that there were contemporary trackways, including the North Downs
ridgeway, which will have come through Wrotham, but no indication that
they were Roman.
In our Society’s booklet Farming in Wrotham through the Ages (July
2004), reference is made to Dr D A Baker’s treatise Agricultural Prices,
Production and Marketing with special reference to the Hop Industry of
North East Kent 1680 – 1760 (1976), and the importance of droving and
the annual migration of cattle. No ancient drove roads have been discovered
in Kent and it is apparent that the Welsh drovers used the main
roads – for example the road from London which passed through
Lewisham, Sidcup and Wrotham en route to Maidstone and Ashford.
Clive Thomas
Wrotham Historical Society
Dear Editor
Following the discovery of the Plough Inn, Sittingbourne, artefacts
(issue no. 64, Spring 2005), I am planning to carry out a study and survey
of period clothing and other artefacts that have been found in Kent houses,
either hidden under floors or in wall spaces, fireplaces etc. Many
museums hold such items and I would very much like to hear from them,
as well as from private householders that may have come across such
things during renovations and rebuilding work. My contact details appear
below.
So little is known of this curious social phenomenon that such a
study and survey would reveal not just new artefacts, but discover patterns
of deposition, both chronologically and typologically, and may offer
L E T T E R S T O T H E E D I T O R
S P R I N G 2 0 0 6
insights as to why particular garments feature more than others. Kent
is home to the largest cache yet discovered in England and I am learning
almost daily of other local finds. Yet despite the number of known
artefacts we still do not have any firm understanding of the reason
and thought behind this surprisingly widespread cultural fad. Several
periods of deposition can be found in one house or even wall space,
which indicates that all involved had some understanding of the practice
at least, something we seem to have lost completely today. Part
of the study will also include the creation of a dedicated website to
encourage further study and allow new artefacts to be recorded as
they are found. This will provide an online database for finds, fully
searchable by all interested parties.
I am hoping to make this study and survey the basis for my MA
and I would appreciate it if any of your readers can help. No find is too
small and all are relevant. The artefacts can be clothes, hats, shoes,
leather straps, tools, books and letters, shoes, anything that appears
where it shouldn’t in a house or outbuilding. I am also not adverse to
any offers of funding for this work, and would be pleased to hear from
anyone who would like to know more about the project, or myself,
with a view to financial support.
Alan Abbey
ajabbey@blueyonder.co.uk
01795 553608
Dear Editor
The recent Time Team visit to Eastry surprised me in one respect.
During the programme there was not a single mention of the
underground caves that some forty to fifty years ago were open to the
public.
I realise that the caves related to a different era from the Time
Team research, but I would still have expected at least a passing
reference.
Can anybody tell me what is the current position of the caves, both
as to accessibility and understanding of their significance?
Brian P Turner
Whitstable
S T M I L D R E D ’ S TAN
Spring 2006 14
Since co-writing a desk assessment in
1999, St Mildred’s Tannery (TR 145577)
has taken up more of my time than can
possibly be healthy, and it’s not over yet. It was
soon clear that large scale excavation was neither
feasible nor necessary. Most of the 3.5
hectare site lies just west of the intramural
branch of the Great Stour, where the water
table is very high: perfect for organic remains
but difficult and expensive to excavate, even in
areas cleared of tanning waste, and no basements
or underground carparks are being built.
Preservation in situ has been preferred, with
engineers and architects designing around and
above the archaeology where possible and minimising
impact where not.
Between earlier excavations, evaluation
trenching, augering, probing, geophysics and
ongoing watching briefs on de-contamination
and construction work, we can show much of
the site west of the river was built on by the
Romans, with several properties lining Watling
Street and side roads. A possible watermill
projected into the river upstream, forcing the
Stour to run faster and cut deeper. This may not
have pleased the residents overmuch as
Watling Street probably crossed it at a ford
(through traffic would have taken a different
route, via Westgate). The final phase of a
building excavated in 1987 was appare n t l y
razed in the late third century, perhaps because
d o w n s t ream riverside developments were
causing flooding. Most of the surrounding area
was also probably abandoned, though one large
(public?) building, with walls over a metre wide
and solid oak piles over half a metre square,
might have continued in use. Demolition material
may have found its way into the town wall,
built about the same time, crossing the site’s
southern-western end.
Six acres, granted as a refuge to the nuns
of Lyminge in 804, were bounded by the river to
one side and the wall to the other. The third
side of the plot probably ran along Watling
Street: a ditch was cut along its crest where the
road was still on dry land and a brushwood
trackway continued its line across the marshland
which had developed closer to the river.
This trackway, like a later one on another line,
led to an island of drier ground formed by the
oak-piled Roman building: two mid-Saxon
bronze pins were recovered from the final surface
within its walls. Another bru s h w o o d
t r a c k w a y, which continued across a wide
watercourse as a stilted causeway, may relate
to patchy early medieval reoccupation of the
site but, from the thirteenth century, the neighbouring
Franciscan Friary gradually turned the
land west of the river into a huge farm, providing
food for the city’s poor. Though a few small
buildings have been identified, this are a
remained open until the Tannery expanded from
its origins on Stour Street in the mid-nineteenth
century.
Sincere thanks are due of course to the
developers, Bellway Homes, and their various
contractors and consultants, but most especially
to the gallant field crew contending with foul
weather, flooding trenches and contaminated
ground: may your respirators never leak.
Simon Pratt
Canterbury Archaeological Trust
NERY, C A N T E R B U RY
15 Spring 2006
LEFT:
The wall of the large Roman building
revealed in a new sewer trench.
ABOVE:
‘Under starters orders.’ Team GSB with GPR
and resistivity rigs.
Published by the Kent Archaeological Society, The Museum, St Faith’s Street, Maidstone, Kent. ME 14 1LH
www.kentarchaeology.org.uk
EDITOR: LYN PALMER
55 Stone Street, Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN1 2QU
Telephone: 01892 533661 Mobile: 07810 340831
Email evelyn.palmer@virgin.net or newsletter@kentarchaeology.org.uk
Copy deadline for the next issue in July is Thursday June 1st.
The editor wishes to draw attention to the fact that neither she nor the Council of the KAS are answerable for opinions
which contributors may express in their signed articles; each author is alone responsible for the
contents and substance of their work.
CLOCKWISEFROMTOPLEFT.
Back end of the culvert - a chink of daylight
reveals the entrance. The post is a recent
repair.
Remains of the track that the culvert carries,
scored away by floods.
Back end showing some of the loosened
stones.
Spring 2006 16
Can you help shed some light on this fine stone structure over a
chalybeate stream in Strawberry Wood, south of Benenden? The site is
on private land but is crossed by what is now the High Weald
Landscape Trail and walkers along the route may have noticed an
impressive culvert bridging the stream.
Now sadly being destroyed by spates of heavy floodwaters, efforts
are underway by local volunteers to record and preserve this striking
feature before it is lost. It has been suggested that it may be an example
of what was once a more common structure in The Weald and local
people are keen to learn more about it.
The culvert is around 5.2m long, 0.8m high and 1.9m wide and carries
the remains of a metalled track. The sides are built in a close-fitting
drystone wall technique
and the builders
were careful to shape the
stones, giving them flat
sides to keep the inner
sides even. The walls are
topped by a row of 6 to 9
very large sandstone lintels,
0.2m thick, which are
themselves covered by a
clay and rubble capping.
The size and structure
of the culvert, coupled with
the presence of the metalled
road, suggests it was
built to support heavy cartloads,
making an association with the Wealden iron industry tempting.
Cindery slag has been found on the surface nearby and a pond bay
is known a little further downstream. No date has yet been ascribed
to the culvert although early maps suggest the road that crosses it had
likely fallen out of use by the late eighteenth century and that it was
not re-established.
Depressions in the surrounding woodland may attest to ironstone
quarrying and a
nearby outcro p
of Ashdown
Beds sandstone
could be the
s o u rce of the
building material
for the culvert.
Over the last
few years, flood -
waters have
begun to severely
damage the
culvert, washing
debris into it and
dislodging many of the stones. A significant part of the overlying clay
has been scoured out and despite mitigation efforts, there are worries
that it may not survive another winter.
Recording of the surviving culvert, including archaeological intervention,
is proposed but the volunteers are appealing for help and
advice from any KAS members who may have information regarding
such structures. Conservation measures involving sympathetic repair
work are then intended. Any reader who has seen a similar culvert
elsewhere or who has experience in engineering, building with stone,
archaeological survey or conservation
work would be very welcome
to join the project, to help
out in a programme of work proposed
for the summer.
Ultimately, it is hoped to preserve
the culvert and present it
as a feature for walkers and local
people to enjoy. The site is located
at NGR TQ 81302 31866 and
i n f o rmation or expressions of
interest should be directed in the
first instance to Ernie Pollard,
who can be emailed at
ernie@pollardweb.com.
STRAWBERRY WOOD CULVERT PROJECT