Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

A cropmark ring ditch at East Northdown was excavated in 1984 in advance of a housing development. The site had previously, and tentatively, been identified as a henge, but proved to be a single continuous circular ditch, which may have originally surrounded the mound of a barrow. No clear primary internment was found, although Beaker sherds were found in secondary contexts. Three possible cremation pits inside the enclosed area plus an inhumation inserted in the ditch attest to Late Bronze Age activity. Pottery, flints and metalwork of Late Bronze Age date were also found. The monument was later incorporated into the boundary of a Romano-British or later field system. Two inhumations inserted into the top of the silted up barrow ditch were probably also of Romano-British or later date

Monument Types

• BARROW (Early Bronze Age - 2350 BC to 1501 BC)
• CREMATION (Early Bronze Age - 2350 BC to 1501 BC)
• RING DITCH (HENGE, Early Bronze Age - 2350 BC to 1501 BC)
• INHUMATION (Late Bronze Age - 1000 BC to 701 BC)
• QUARRY (Iron Age - 800 BC to 42 AD)
• FIELD SYSTEM (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Associated Finds

• BEAKER (Early Bronze Age - 2350 BC to 1501 BC)
• LITHIC IMPLEMENT (Late Bronze Age - 1000 BC to 701 BC)
• QUERN (Late Bronze Age - 1000 BC to 701 BC)
• SPINDLE WHORL (Late Bronze Age to Early Iron Age - 1000 BC to 700 BC)
• TWEEZERS (Late Bronze Age to Early Iron Age - 1000 BC to 700 BC)

Full description

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TR 386705. Cropmark site of Henge at Northdown. Scheduled. See illustration card. (No further information. Nothing visible on AP St Joseph ADI 68 (see extent covered by this air photograph on illustration card) or AP OS/75/020/No 030 22.3.1975). (1) TR 38507045. Hengiform monument excavated in August and September 1984 by the Central Excavation Unit as a condition of Scheduled Monument Consent prior to house construction over the site. The excavation showed that the site was more closely related to a burial site than a henge. The neatly circular ditch had no trace of a causeway, and evidence of an external bank was found. The ditch seems to have been deliberately laid out around a large solution hole in the chalk bedrock. There was no central or other burial which might be regarded as primary although a few pieces of beaker (one AOC) in secondary positions in the ditch fill may date the monument's construction. Within the ditched enclosure there were five small pits which may have been cremations, one containing a bronze fragment. The monument continued in use for a considerable period shown by the deposition in one area of the lower ditch silts of disarticulated and partially articulated human and animal bones. A grave was cut into the inner edge of the ditch but, nothing remained of any skeleton. A chalk quarry pit was cut into the ditch side. This quarry pit and the ditch-edge grave were both sealed by the deposition in the partially silted-in ditch of a layer of domestic rubbish, including scrapers, knives, hammerstones, quern fragments, spindle whorls, a bronze conical boss, a bronze razor, bronze tweezers and pottery attributable to the period 1000-700 BC. Three small ring ditches outside the ring ditch suggested that it had later been incorporated in the corner of a Romano-British field and in this period two E-W orientated extended inhumations were inserted in the top of the silted-in ditch. (2) TR 385705 (Sited to nearest 50m) Cropmark of barrow or henge. Site No.14. (3) TR 38497049. Ring ditch incorrectly identified as "cropmark of henge". (4,5) Aerial photograph. (6) A circular ditch which originally had an outer bank laid around a central hollow was found. Five small pits in the ditched enclosure yielded a bronze fragment and human and animal bones. A grave was cut into the inner edge of the ditch whilst the outer edge revealed a chalk quarry pit. Domestic rubbish, flint scrapers, knives, quern fragments, pottery (c1000-700 BC) were also found. The site later formed part of a Romano-British field (see illustration card). (7) Scheduled listing. (8) Deschuled 2nd december 1998 (9)

<1> DOE(IAM) AMs Rec Note Oct 1982 (OS Card Reference). SKE41421.

<2> Arch Cant 101 1984 361-2 (GH Smith) (OS Card Reference). SKE34568.

<3> Thanet The Arch Heritage c1982 4 (Thanet Dist Coun & Isle of Thanet Arch Unit) (OS Card Reference). SKE49892.

<4> RCHME Excavation Index Thanet Kent 14 PRN 15349 (OS Card Reference). SKE48998.

<5> AP (CUC AN X 24-5; 16.5.66) (OS Card Reference). SKE33371.

<6> AP (NMR TR 3870/3; 16.7.79) (OS Card Reference). SKE33791.

<7> Isle of Thanet Arch Unit Sites and Mons Archive 1988 Record No 14 (OS Card Reference). SKE44695.

<8> DOE(IAM) SAMS 1988 Kent 23 (OS Card Reference). SKE41454.

<9> Not applicable, SMR Kent uncatalogued index entry, Pers Comm EH to KCC 02/12/98. (Miscellaneous Material). SKE6440.

Sources and further reading