Monument record BAW 212 - Iron Age settlement at East Anglia One Area 50 (EXC)

2017-2018: Iron Age remains comprised two droveways and seven enclosures encompassing a series of circular ditches, pits and postholes indicative of extensive and continued settlement activity. This appeared to be relatively small scale during the earlier Iron Age, comprising just a single enclosure, before, developing and becoming more extensive throughout the Middle and Late Iron Age periods.

Iron Age activity extended across the majority of the site, with a clear western boundary formed by a series of intercutting north/south-orientated ditches forming Iron Age Droveway 1. A series of rectangular enclosures extended eastwards from this western boundary encompassing multiple pits, postholes and circular ditches, interpreted as the eavesdrip gullies of roundhouses and/or working areas/animal pens. Many of the features attributed to this phase contained large assemblages of Middle to Late Iron Age pottery. The western limit to the Iron Age activity was located close to where the ground level drops away towards the River Deben and the natural geology changes from fine free draining sands to clays.

The largest pottery assemblage from the site was Iron Age in date (16,808 sherds/119.337kg). Pottery of an Early Iron Age date was relatively limited, but the larger Middle and Late Iron Age assemblage comprises slack-shouldered ovoid jars and bowls, with wheel-turned grog-tempered jars and bowls in the “Belgic” style. (S1)

Included in the Proceedings of the Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and History annual round up of individual finds and discoveries for 2017 (S2).

(See also Neolithic and Bronze Age, Roman, Medieval)