Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

A mixed rite Roman cemetery was discovered during excavations associated with the construction of the East Kent Access route in Thanet. The cemetery lay to the north west of an area between two Roman trackways, with an additional discreet group of five burials approximately 30m to the east. More have been discovered during prior investigations in the vicinity. (location accurate to the nearest 1m based on available information)

Monument Types

• CEMETERY (Roman - 43 AD? to 299 AD?)
• CREMATION (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• INHUMATION (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Associated Finds

• BRACELET (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• BROOCH (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• COIN (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• HOB NAIL (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• NAIL (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
• VESSEL (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Full description

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A mixed rite Roman cemetery lay to the north west of an area between two Roman trackways, with an additional discreet group of five burials approximately 30m to the east (cutting the eastern trackway). The main cemetery group comprised 11 inhumation burials and 18 cremation burials. This is in addition to five inhumations and five cremations which were discovered in earlier excavations in the immediate vicinity (during the 1970s and 1980s). three ‘empty’ graves, possibly coneotaphs, were also present. It is possible that further burials may lie beyond the limits of excavation to the north. The main group of burials covered an area of 50m by 25m. most of the graves appear to cluster to the east and south east of a small enclosure which contained a sunken featured building. The mixture of cremation and inhumation burials together with the ceramic and finds evidence suggests a main period of use spanning the 1st to 2nd centuries AD with one inhumation extending its use into the 4th century. Approximately two thirds of the cremation burials were urned. In total 16 graves contained pottery vessels which, including urns, ranged in number from one to four. Five of the burials were accompanied by grave goods other than pottery, comprising a ring and four brooches. Ageing an sexing the inhumation burials revealed that just five were adults, the remainder comprising a neonate, three infants and a juvenile. Also no males were identified. The five graves to the east of the cemetery comprised three inhumations (two adult males and one possible adult female) and two cremations. (information summarised from source) (1-2)

Most of the inhumations were buried in wooden coffins. Most contained grave goods including pottery vessels, copper alloy brooches and bracelets and coins. (1)

<1> Oxford Wessex Archaeology Joint Venture, 2011, East Kent Access (Phase II), Thanet, Kent: Post-Excavation Assessment Volume 1 (Unpublished document). SKE29279.

<2> Andrews et al, 2015, Digging The Gateway: Archaeological Landscapes of South Thanet. The Archaeology of East Kent Access (Phase III) Vol 1: The sites (Monograph). SKE55517.

Sources and further reading