Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

During the East Kent Access Route excavations (2009-2011) in Zone 23, a group of Iron Age features were uncovered. This included horseshoe enclosure possibly originally a livestock enclosure and several ditches/trackways which probably represent parts of a field system. (location accurate to the nearest 1m based on available information)

Monument Types

• DITCH (Middle Iron Age to Late Iron Age - 400 BC to 42 AD)
• ENCLOSURE (Middle Iron Age to Late Iron Age - 400 BC to 42 AD)
• FIELD BOUNDARY (Middle Iron Age to Late Iron Age - 400 BC? to 42 AD?)
• PIT (Middle Iron Age to Late Iron Age - 400 BC to 42 AD)
• TRACKWAY? (Middle Iron Age to Late Iron Age - 400 BC to 42 AD)

Associated Finds

• POTTERY ASSEMBLAGE (Middle Iron Age to Late Iron Age - 400 BC to 42 AD)

Full description

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Although the dating evidence is sparse, it is likely that most of the features in Zone 23 were Iron Age in date. The gullies and ditches were associated with several phases of field system, with possible evidence for animal husbandry represented by a small horseshoe shaped enclosure in the corner of one of the fields. However the shallow depth of most of the features makes the confident assertion of stratigraphic relationships difficult.

The horseshoe enclosure had a diameter of 19m enclosing an area of 270m squared with a wide opening on the southern side. the eastern and northern sides were re cut on several occasions. The size of the ditches (and associated bank) would not have been sufficiently substantial to function as a boundary on their own and therefore there may have been an associated hedge to contain the animals. A component element of the eastern side of this enclosure ditch produced some disarticulated human bone.

Immediately west of the enclosure was a north south aligned ditch, parallel to this and some 7m further west was a more substantial but shallow north south aligned ditch which, like the horse shoe enclosure, had been re cut on several occasions, and represented the western boundary of Iron Age activity in this area. It is possible that these parallel ditches may have formed a trackway rather than a boundary. To the east of the enclosure were two parallel east-west aligned ditches 1.5m apart which extended over a distance of 150m and apparently ended at Laundry road. one of the ditches cut the latest phase of the enclosure ditch but it also terminated there, suggesting that these features are broadly contemporary. These parallel ditches may have represented two phases of field boundary, or perhaps a narrow trackway. The potter from all of these features dated to the mid to late Iron Age and was accompanied by a small amount of animal bone, shell and worked flint.
Two further shorth length of ditch, aligned WNW-ESE may be remnants of a trackway, perhaps part of an earlier field system (they were on a different alignment to the rest of the field system in this area).

There was no evidence for settlement in this area and there was little domestic debris deposited in the ditches. It seems likely that the nearest settlement was beyond Zone 23/24 to the west. (information summarised from source) (1-2)

A 2021 desk-based assessment reassessed a 1995 evaluation to the south of the site. The assessment indicated that a feature formerly thought to have formed part of a Neolithic/Bronze age enclosure (TR 36 NW 177), was likely to have formed part of the Iron Age N-S aligned ditch as it did not fit with the shape of the enclosure. (3)

<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.

<3> Thanet Archaeological Services, 2021, Land adjacent to Laundry Road Minster, Kent, Archaeological Appraisal and Assessment of Potential (Unpublished document). SKE57864.

Sources and further reading