Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

Excavations in advance of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link in 2002-3 identified a series of property boundaries surrounding property 12 of the Roman roadside settlement at Springhead. (location accurate to the nearest 1m based on available information)

Monument Types

• POST HOLE (Roman - 50 AD? to 150 AD?)
• GULLY (Roman - 150 AD? to 225 AD?)

Full description

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Excavations in advance of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link in 2002-3 identified a series of property boundaries surrounding property 12 of the Roman roadside settlement at Springhead. The earliest south eastern was defined by a sequence of at least two lines of post-holes, the earlier of these extended back approximately 30 m from the street frontage and comprised a series of regularly-spaced post-holes at 2 m intervals. This was replaced later by a less regular arrangement, both probably mark the former location of fence lines. They were replaced shallow ditch or gully which ran across one of the brickearth quarries which had by then perhaps largely infilled. The full length of the gully was not uncovered but it seems likely that it ran to two further gullies which were located to the west. These lay at 90° to it and defined the western limit to the property. These gullies terminated approximately 15 m to the north-west and there were no further boundary features to the north, probably indicating that it was open on this side. (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 The Late Iron Age, Roman, Saxon, and Medieval Landscape (Unpublished document).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

Related records