Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

The remains of a probable salt panning site. Finds including Roman pottery, occupation-industrial debris floor surfaces and kilns/hearths, identified near the mouth of Cliffe Creek. The pottery was identified as of 2nd/3rd cent. Date. A Roman brooch was found here in February 1969. Large scatterings of Roman pottery were also identified at the site during a 2005 survey.

Monument Types

• POTTERY KILN? (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• SALT WORKS? (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD (at some time))
• SITE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Associated Finds

• ANIMAL REMAINS (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• BRIQUETAGE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• BROOCH (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Full description

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The foreshore at Cliffe Saltinge (area TQ 70827718) is littered with Roman potsherds, briquettage and animal bones, and some Roman brick and tile fragments, At TQ 70827716 erosion has exposed in the cliff face a band of rammed chalk, apparently of a floor; and on the foreshore at TQ 70827714, ('A'), a group of three egg-shaped depressions of burnt clay are visible. These are each 1.2 m by 0.7 m, and appear to be similar to the structures noted by Gray on the Upchurch marshes, and thought to be kilns or hearths. (see TQ 87 SE 16) (1) This is probably a salt-panning site. The pottery was identified as of 2nd/3rd cent. date (2). TQ 70807714: Roman brooch found in February 1969 by Mr.B.Missons. (4)/(10) Additional bibliography (3,5 & 6). Relevant references from field reports (7,8). For site in context with others in inter-tidal zone, see (9). Seen during thew 2005 coastal survey. The whole area of the intertidal zone is scattered with pottery (11)

<1> F1 FGA 16-DEC-64 (OS Card Reference). SKE42927.

<2> L Medway ARG 33 April 1965 (OS Card Reference). SKE45983.

<3> Arch Cant 81 1966 lv (Hutchings) (OS Card Reference). SKE35730.

<4> F2 ASP 14-NOV-69 (OS Card Reference). SKE43111.

<5> The pottery kilns of Ro Brit 1984 Gaz 393 (VG Swan) (OS Card Reference). SKE50475.

<6> Arch Cant 91 1975 208 (P Day) (OS Card Reference). SKE36050.

<7> Field report for monument TQ 77 NW 6 - December, 1964 (Bibliographic reference). SKE4219.

<8> Field report for monument TQ 77 NW 6 - November, 1969 (Bibliographic reference). SKE4220.

<9> Department of Archaeology, University of Reading, 1994, Inter-tidal archaeology in Kent, p 28 (Unpublished document). SWX9353.

<10> Miles, A., 1968, Romano-British salt-panning hearths at Cliffe (Article in serial). SWX9380.

<11> Wessex Archaeology, 2005, North Kent Coast Rapid Coastal Zone Assessment Survey: Phase ll: Field Assessment Year Two Report (Unpublished document). SWX12323.

Sources and further reading