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Monument details

HER Number:TQ 67 SW 1595
Type of record:Monument
Name:Group of 18 early Roman pits, Springhead, Northfleet

Summary

A group of 18 pits with an early roman date were uncovered during excavations at Springhead in 2000-2002. The pits were a range of shapes and sizes, and there is an outlier to the north. it is unclear if any of the pits had particular functions other than rubbish disposal, and it also unclear from where precisely this rubbish was originating. The smallest of the features may have been large post-holes rather than pits, but these were scattered and showed no coherent pattern. (location accurate to the nearest 1m based on available information)


Grid Reference:TQ 6180 7264
Map Sheet:TQ67SW
Parish:GRAVESEND, GRAVESHAM, KENT

Monument Types

  • BURIAL (Roman - 50 AD? to 150 AD?)
  • PIT (Roman - 50 AD? to 150 AD?)

Associated Finds

Full description

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A group of 18 pits with an early roman date were uncovered during excavations at Springhead in 2000-2002. The pits were a range of shapes and sizes, and there is an outlier to the north. it is unclear if any of the pits had particular functions other than rubbish disposal, and it also unclear from where precisely this rubbish was originating. The smallest of the features may have been large post-holes rather than pits, but these were scattered and showed no coherent pattern. They may be associated with a trackway located to the north east which would have afforded access to this area from the south-east. The two pits located closest to this trackway were the most substantial of this group and both contained relatively large finds assemblages. Also amongst this group of features were the remains of a shallow grave which contained a neonate burial accompanied by a small, inverted pot which had been placed to the left of the skull. (1)


<1> Oxford Wessex Archaeology Joint Venture, 2010, Settling the Ebbsfleet Valley. CTRL Excavations at Springhead and Northfleet, Kent. The Late Iron Age, Roman, Saxon, and Medieval Landscape (Unpublished document). SKE31245.

Sources and further reading

Cross-ref. Source description
<1>XYUnpublished document: Oxford Wessex Archaeology Joint Venture. 2010. Settling the Ebbsfleet Valley. CTRL Excavations at Springhead and Northfleet, Kent. The Late Iron Age, Roman, Saxon, and Medieval Landscape. [Mapped feature: #106277 pits, ]