An Investigation into the Archaeological History of Tidgrove Warren Farm

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The Romano-British Site

2004 Excavation Report (extracts)
Prepared by Southampton University

Aims

The aims of the 2004 excavation were to investigate the nature and form of the features associated with the Romano-British settlement that was located in 2003. Although the morphology of the site appears to be similar to that of other late Iron Age and Roman farmsteads in the vicinity of Basingstoke; a number of features needed to be examined to allow a chronology of the settlement to be established; the main enclosure ditch and outer ditch of the site were excavated to understand the date and form of the features. Similarly the rectilinear ditch found in the geophysical survey was also investigated, to determine its date in relation to the main concentration of the settlement.

Phasing and Chronolgy of Features

The material recoverd from the site in 2004 points overwhelmingly to a Late Iron Age foundation of the settlement. Dating of the earliest phase of the site is limited due to the lack of ceramic evidence from the primary ditch fills. However, the date of the pottery from the main features is similar to that located at a number of farm sites in the region. The ceramics date in the 1st century AD, fitting with Thompson's phase 2 of dating from Viables Farm (Basingstoke). Later phasing of the settlement relies heavily on material from the ploughsoil, and this illustrates the degree to which the later deposits have been truncated through agricultural activity. The distribution of Alice Holt Ware in the vicinioty of the excavations, and the number of coins found dating from 1st - 4th centuries, gives a substatial length to the site chronolgy that, as yet, is not represented in the excavated deposits.

Pottery Assemblage

The pottery from Tidgove Warren Farm is dominated by functional ceramic form, including cooking pots, one large storage jar and beaded jars that characterize the site as rural. The pottery can be compared by form and date with the assemblge from the nearby site of Viables Farm (Basingstoke), and fits into the second and third phases of the sequence provided by THompson, dated to the 1st century AD (phase dominated by handmade beaded rimmed jars with occasional wheel-thrown vessels), and to the late 1st century AD and later (phase dominated by Romano-British forms of pottery). The pottery seems to have been predominantly locally produced, with a small quantity of imported goods, represented by a few finewares from southern and cetral Gaul, one amphora sherd from Southern Spain and by later products including Oxfordshire ware.

Animal Bone Assemblages

It has long been recognised that the relative frequency of the major domesticates (cattle, caprines and pig) vary according to settlement type and its degree of Romanization. High frequencies of sheep/goat are commonly found on native rural sites whilst military and other Romanized settlements tend to display higher frequencies of cattle and pig. More recently it has been suggested that differences in taxa ratio indicate not only changes in dietary choice but also reflect shifts in animal husbandry which occurred in response to wider economic intensification and social change. Numerous sites, both urban and rural, dating to the Iron Age/Romano-British period have been excavated in southern England and many have produced assemblages of animal bone that have been reported on in detail. Those from contemporary sites in fairly close proximity to Kingsclere include the rural assemblages from Monk Sherbome and Viables Farm, Basingstoke but also those from urban settlements such as Silchester. At Silchester, cattle are generally dominant whilst the smaller rural sites (such as that at Tidgrove Warren) tend to produce cattle and caprines in more equal numbers, even in later deposits such as those dated to the 3rd and 4th century at Monk Sherbome.

Urban centres are likely to have relied, to some extent, on their hinterland as a source of provisions and therefore it is likely that species representation will reflect the forces of supply and demand. Detailed analysis of the characteristics of faunal assemblages, in particular body part representation and mortality profiles, is a valuable source of data on which to base inferences concerning urban/rural relationships however in this instance the assemblage is of insufficient size to withstand detailed analysis or to provide a firm basis for interpretation.

Metal Finds

A total of 15 metal finds were recoverd from sealed deposits during the 2004 excavations, all from the late Iron Age and early Roman contexts. These were dominated by a number of iron objects, including six iron hobnails. These are probably of Roman date, and most were recovered during cleaning of the trenches.

Discussion and Conclusions

The 2004 excavations at Tidgrove Warren Farm verify that the geophysical survey carried out in the field to the south of the Farm indeed located a late Iron Age and Roman farm site. The features excavated contained features dating to one phase of the settlement, although the material found in the ploughsoil of the site suggests a longer period of occupation stretching from 1st century BC to the 4th century AD. The overwhelming majority of ceramic material from the sealed deposits suggests a 1st century AD phase of occupation for the site. Indeed the form of the ceramic material suggests a phase of occupation similar to Thompson's phase II at the Viables Farm site. In addition, some medieval activity may have occurred, in the form of the construction of rabbit warrens in the area, evidence of which was discovered in Trench 4.

On the basis of the evidence collated from the 2004 excavation, there appear to be two concentrations of settlement activity, each of a broadly comparable date. The earlier focus appears to be concentrated in the area within and around the main settlement enclosure ditch and the outer ditch in Trenches 1 and 2. The presence of beaded rim jars and other domestic vessels in the fill of the outer ditch, together with some wheel-thrown vessels, suggests a 1st century AD date to the fill of the outer ditch, comparable with the phase two level of occupation at the Viables Farm site, or phase one of activity at the Dairy Lane site near Southampton.

The material found in the main ditch of Trench 3 is also of 1st century AD date, although with a distinct emphasis on Roman material. Not only did this feature contain a massive quantity of animal bone, the pottery from the ditch was all wheel-thrown coarseware of Roman date. The fill of the ditch contained one fragment of Dressel 20 amphora. The ceramic material from Trench 3 suggests not only a slightly later phase of activity from the main site concentration to the north, but the quantity of animal bone gives a different emphasis on the type of material being discarded. The outer ditch near the main enclosure appears to have been the repository for a large amount of locally produced domestic pottery, in particular cooking vessels. By contrast the ditch to the south contained animal bone and coarseware fragments.

Overall, the material found in the sealed deposits of Trenches 1, 2, 3, and 5 indicate a late Iron Age date to the settlement, with a continuation of habitation into the Roman period. The features themselves have all been badly truncated by modem agricultural activity, attested to by their form, and the massive quantity of later Roman ceramic material and coinage that has been recovered from the plough-soil around and downslope from the settlement. This material includes later Alice Holt pottery, and a number of coins dating from 1st - 4th century AD, including a coin of Constantinian date. In some ways, the focus of the 2004 excavation on the ditch features located in the 2003 geophysical survey has allowed a structured phasing to be developed for the site, but has limited the discovery and investigation of any potential structures associated with the settlement boundaries. Bearing in mind the nature of the settlement, and the severe damage that it has suffered through ploughing, it would be advantageous to investigate the form and extent of any possible habitations within and outside of the main enclosure ditch of the site. This would allow us to establish exactly which areas were used for habitation, and which may have been adapted to storage and farm work.

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