Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

Mesolithic flints, Roman tile and pottery, medieval pottery, post medieval pottery. All recorded in artefact scatters.

Monument Types

• FINDSPOT (Early Mesolithic to Modern - 10000 BC to 1901 AD)

Associated Finds

• LITHIC IMPLEMENT (Mesolithic - 10000 BC to 4001 BC)
• SCRAPER (TOOL) (Mesolithic - 10000 BC? to 4001 BC?)
• FLUE TILE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• POTTERY ASSEMBLAGE (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• TEGULA (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• POTTERY ASSEMBLAGE (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• COIN (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• POTTERY ASSEMBLAGE (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)

Full description

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[TQ 904 652 - sited from Map A.] On the opposite side of the road, leading to Milton Church, to where the tile tombs were found [see TQ 96 NW 9], Roman tiles and fragments of pottery were found. (1)

An area formerly worked for brickearth but now under cultivation: no trace of tile or pottery was seen. (2)

The archaeological interest of Church Field lies in the fact that Roman building materials occur in the fabric of the nearby church and that Roman building foundations were discovered in the graveyard. The excavation plan was swiftly to dig 1 x 2m trenches at intervals of 20m, down to undisturbed brick earth. Although evidence of Roman occupation was revealed, no trace of foundations, mortar or walls were detected in any of the trenches. The presence of Roman roof and flue tiles was indicative of a building in the vicinity, however. (3)

The second phase of work consisted of the excavation of a line of trenches across the centre of the field (approximately east-west) and the excavation of one trench in each `quarter'. No Roman building foundations were detected. The only feature discovered was an insubstantial linear arrangement of flints, of medieval or recent date, probably representing the packing of a field drain. Roman period material continued to be found, however, and this included fragments of tegulae and some coarse ware pottery. There seemed to be little pattern to the distribution of these finds, and thus there remained no clue to the locality of foundations, if any existed in the field. Signs of Mesolithic occupation were plentiful, and flint finds included several worked hand tools and `scrapers'. Medieval glazed pottery fragments were found, as well as tiles, daub and recent pottery and glass. (4)

In the third phase of excavations, no evidence for the presence of Roman foundations was detected. However, the distribution of roof tiles and flue tiles indicated a building close by. One possibility is that a Roman structure occupied the site now covered by the church itself, and extended to the north, but not to the west. (5)

<1> Coll Cant 1893 33 (G Payne) (OS Card Reference). SKE39145.

<2> F1 AC 09-JUL-63 (OS Card Reference). SKE41779.

<3> Kent Arch Review No.49 (1977) 206-210. (OS Card Reference). SKE45869.

<4> Kent Arch Review No.52 (1978) 26-7. (OS Card Reference). SKE45871.

<5> Kent Arch Review No.66 (1981) 133-4. (OS Card Reference). SKE45872.

<6> Field report for monument TQ 96 NW 5 - July, 1963 (Bibliographic reference). SKE4864.

<7> 1980, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX11284.

<8> 1980, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX11284.

Sources and further reading