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Monument details
Summary
A small cemetery with mausoleum was discovered within the footprint of an agricultural building/workshop that fronts the northern side of Watling Street during excavations at Springhead. The mausoleum appears to have been inserted in the eastern side of the building after it had become derelict, sometime in the late third or fourth century. (location accurate to the nearest 10m based on available information)
| Grid Reference: | TQ 6178 7251 |
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| Map Sheet: | TQ67SW |
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| Parish: | SOUTHFLEET, DARTFORD, KENT |
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Monument Types
Associated Finds
- KNIFE (Roman - 250 AD? to 350 AD?)
- MUSSEL SHELL (Roman - 250 AD? to 350 AD?)
- PIN (Roman - 250 AD? to 350 AD?)
- POT (Roman - 250 AD? to 350 AD?)
- STYLUS (Roman - 250 AD? to 350 AD?)
| Protected Status: | Scheduled Monument 158 |
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Full description
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A small cemetery with mausoleum was discovered within the footprint of an agricultural building/workshop that fronts the northern side of Watling Street during excavations at Springhead. The mausoleum appears to have been inserted in the eastern side of the building after it had become derelict, sometime in the late third or fourth century. The mausoleum was small and constructed using flint with a chalk floor and a longish tiled feature. The latter may have been a platform for conducting cremations as the tiles had been extensively cracked by heat. All of the burials were of children, three were identified in total but it is likely that there were originally more which have been subsequently destroyed by ploughing. One was located in a pot with an upstanding
tile on either side and several bone pins located nearby. There was a young child inhumation inside the mausoleum, there were no grave goods but four small pots were found around the building. The third burial was between the mausoleum and platform. It was crudely surrounded by stones and pebbles and may have been covered by a tile. Mussel shells accompanied the burials and may have possessed some religious significance. (1-2)
<1> WS Penn, 1965, Archaeologia Cantiana, Springhead - map of Discoveries (Article in serial). SKE12613.
<2> W. S. Penn, 1968, Archaeologia Cantiana - The Romano British Settlement at Springhead, Miscellaneous Excavations (Article in serial). SKE53588.
Sources and further reading
| Cross-ref.
| Source description | | <1> | Article in serial: WS Penn. 1965. Archaeologia Cantiana, Springhead - map of Discoveries. Vol 80, pp 107-117. |
| <2>XY | Article in serial: W. S. Penn. 1968. Archaeologia Cantiana - The Romano British Settlement at Springhead, Miscellaneous Excavations. Vol 83 pp163-192. [Mapped feature: #109128 burial area, ] |
Related records
| TQ 67 SW 1763 | Part of: Possible agricultural building/ blacksmiths workshop along Watling Street (Building 10) at the Roman settlement at Springhead (Monument) |
| TQ 67 SW 6 | Part of: Vagniacae (Springhead), Iron Age and Roman religious centre (Monument) |
