Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

A late Iron Age ritual landscape centred on the spring at the head of the Ebbsfleet. Their seems to have been a trackway, ceremonial way, leading to a point overlooking the spring which may have been enclosed by a ditch. Outside of the ditch three groups of pits have been found containing pottery and or animal bone. These may have been ritual deposits. (location accurate to the nearest 100m based on available information)

Monument Types

• DITCH (Late Iron Age - 100 BC? to 42 AD? (at some time))
• HOLLOW (Late Iron Age - 100 BC? to 42 AD? (at some time))
• PIT (Late Iron Age - 100 BC to 42 AD)
• SPRING (Late Iron Age to Roman - 100 BC? to 409 AD? (at some time))

Associated Finds

• ANIMAL REMAINS (Late Iron Age - 100 BC? to 42 AD?)
• COIN (Late Iron Age - 100 BC? to 42 AD?)
• POTTERY ASSEMBLAGE (Late Iron Age - 100 BC? to 42 AD?)

Full description

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An extensive Late Iron Age ritual landscape focused on the spring at the head of the Ebbsfleet was discovered during excavations associated with the HS1 rail link. Late Iron Age features were largely confined to the excavations at the south end of the Ebbsfleet Valley at Springhead. Across the excavation area, following the line of the Ebbsfleet, were two parallel ditches approximately 15m part extending over a distance of 450 m. They have been interpreted as forming a processional or ceremonial way leading to a point above the Ebbsfleet. Near the end of the track were two shallow hollows containing a large quantity of pottery. Their function is not clear, but they are close to where a later Roman viewing platform has been found. In addition there seems to have been a large ditch dug enclosing the area of the springs which remained open into the early Roman period. Outside the ditched area three pit groups were found. Some of the pits contained pottery and/or animal bones, including one with a complete cow skeleton. These have been identified as structured deposits which may have been of a ritual nature. Nearly 70 Iron Age coins were recovered for the site mostly on the upper slopes of the valley corresponding closely to the location of the processional way.No settlement has been found, although earlier excavations to the south of the A2 have found structures, ditches and pits underneath the Springhead Roman temple complex (TQ 67 SW 6). (1-2)

<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.

<2> Wessex Archaeology, 2003, Channel Tunel Rail Link Archaeological works at Springhead Roman Town (ARC SPH00): interim fieldwork report (Unpublished document). SKE31600.

Sources and further reading

Related records