Monument record 0420601000 - CHESHAM BOIS

MANSION AND PARK GONE SITE NOW OCCUPIED BY BOIS HOUSE NO TRACES FOUND (B1).
FIELD THROUGH WHICH CARRIAGEWAY TO HOUSE PASSED KNOWN UNTIL LATE 19TH CENTURY AS 'COACH MEADOW' (B2).
13TH CENTURY CHAPEL OF MANOR HOUSE NOW PART OF PARISH CHURCH. HOUSE APPARENTLY IN MEADOW AT BACK OF PRESENT BOIS HOUSE (B3).
Geophysical survey carried out by CVAHS in June and July 2004 around the existing building identified a number of anomalies interpreted as possible building foundations of the former mansion, as well as later garden features and buildings. Two areas of anomalies in the Kitchen Garden and East Field do not relate to features shown on the 1735 estate map and it is suggested that they may be medieval or earlier remains. See report for details (B5,B9).
Medieval features were encountered in Trenches 1, 4, and 5. A series of hearths and associated structures appear to be of later medieval and early post-medieval date. The boundary ditch in Trench 5 that appears to to surround the present house, and presumably the earlier manorial complex, was constructed some time in the medieval period and backfilled in the early post-medieval period. Structural remains in T2, 3, and 6 are of post-medieval date and may represent parts of buildings depicted on the 1735 Bedford estate map. Remains in T2 appear to be part of a long, narrow wing of a building, possibly a stable block or similar structure. Features in T3 appear to represent a garden wall and associated surfaces. In T6 remains of a former cellar backfilled with demolition rubble likely derived from demolition of the manor house in the late 18th or early 19th century. Trench 7 identified a post-medieval trackway and possible terracing deposits in Church Field (B6).
AREA 1 - resistance data identified anomalies which are thought to be most likely associated with garden features rather than building foundations. Excavation revealed walls and silod brick/tile surfaces. AREA 2 identified wall foundations likely associated with the medieval manor house. GPR survey identified responses towards the south of the area. The most dominant feature was a rectangular area of high amplitude. Thest pit showed this to be a quantity of bricks, possibly backfilling a cellar. AREA 3 - band of high resistance aligned north-south corcorrelates to a sharp change in topography. Excavation revealed walls associated with the former stable block. AREA 5 - Field SW of the church. A linear response, e-w, corresponds to a bank that is thought to be an early boundary. Turns through a sharp angle and heads south. GPR survey of this area across a potential building platform and purported medieval boundary ditch. The building platform reveaed very few distinct reflectors and certainly nothing to suggest there are noteworthy archaeological remains. No obvious change in response was noted across the ditch. This would suggest the ditch has never been significantly deeper than it is or that there is little contrast between the fill and the edges (B7).