Monument record 1579200000 - SW of Benthill Farm

Anomalies of a small, irregular oval ditched enclosure approximately 40m X 30m identified by geophysical survey carried out in September 2022 by Headland Archaeology in advance of proposed residential development (B2).
Evaluation trial trenching carried out in September and October 2023 by Oxford Archaeology confirmed the presence of the enclosure ditch in Trenches 53 and 54, 2.2m wide, with moderately steep sides, a wide rounded base approximately 0.7m deep and fills containing late Iron Age pottery, animal bone and residual worked flint. 4 narrow and shallow ditches found nearby in trenches 53, 54 and 56 appear to be associated with the enclosure and included pottery, animal bone and residual worked flint in the fills. Due to a lack of discrete features such as postholes or pits indicative of settlement, and the relatively sterile ditch fills of the enclosure, this was interpreted as a stock enclosure. The smaller external ditches could represent further farming related activity or the edge of an associated farmstead, but there is minimal evidence from the geophysical survey or other trial trenches to support the latter interpretation. See report for detail (B3).