Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

The earthwork remains of a cluster of irregular mounds at Bush Wick thought to be medieval saltern mounds. These were mapped from RAF aerial photographs as part of the English Heritage: Hoo Peninsula Landscape Project.Finds of Roman and medieval pottery, refuse pits and evidence for salt panning have been noted.Saltern mounds are the result of large-scale salt manufacturing where brine was extracted from salt-rich sands and sediments, concentrated and evaporated using process known as sleeching. The discarded waste material from the process built up around the production area into a sizeable mound, often with a hollow in the centred where a hut stood. These medieval saltern mounds are typically described as `floriate' in form because of their irregular lobed formation of dumped waste. They often occur in clusters around former and surviving tidal water-courses within the marsh. There has been considerable reclamation and subsequent sea wall construction since the medieval period which has isolated these sites from the sea. Many of these mounds were subsequently utilised as sheepfolds, sheep washes and stock refuges in the post medieval period because of their slightly elevated position in the readily flooded marshes. Roman finds have been extracted this site, but studies at other sites have indicated that these finds are from the lower levels, and not associated with the mounds. Post-Roman flooding and silt deposition has resulted in Roman sites lying typically several feet below the current land surface.

Monument Types

• FINDSPOT (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• KILN (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• MOUND (Roman to Medieval - 43 AD to 1539 AD)

Associated Finds

• POTTERY ASSEMBLAGE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Full description

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TQ 7467 7806: Cliffe marshes, Bush Wick. A levelled mound,
with Roman and medieval pottery. Salt panning and rubbish
pits were visible on the cleared banks of the north and
south drain and two levelled areas at TQ 7470 7810. (1)

The earthwork remains of a cluster of five irregular mounds at Bush Wick (centred at TQ 7463 7808) thought to be medieval saltern mounds. The mounds are situated at a point where two watercourses, both draining into Cliffe Fleet, meet. The western creek appears to have been straightened at some point in the post medieval period. The mounds vary in size from c. 14m x 20m to 35m x 60m.

Saltern mounds are the result of large-scale salt manufacturing where brine was extracted from salt-rich sands and sediments, concentrated and evaporated using process known as sleeching. The discarded waste material from the process built up around the production area into a sizeable mound, often with a hollow in the centred where a hut stood. These medieval saltern mounds are typically described as `floriate' in form because of their irregular lobed formation of dumped waste. They often occur in clusters around former and surviving tidal water-courses within the marsh. There has been considerable reclamation and subsequent sea wall construction since the medieval period which has isolated these sites from the sea.

Many of these mounds were subsequently utilised as sheepfolds, sheep washes and stock refuges in the post medieval period because of their slightly elevated position in the readily flooded marshes.

Roman finds have been extracted this site, but studies at other sites have indicated that these finds are from the lower levels, and not associated with the mounds. Post-Roman flooding and silt deposition has resulted in Roman sites lying typically several feet below the current land surface.

These were mapped from RAF aerial photographs as part of the English Heritage: Hoo Peninsula Landscape Project. (2)

<1> Arch Cant 96 1980 380 (P Thornhill and P Payne) (OS Card Reference). SKE36255.

<2> 1946, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX9443.

<3> 1946, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX9632.

<4> 1946, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX9633.

<5> 1947, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX9780.

Sources and further reading

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