EDO6460 - Proposed Manege at Milton Abbey School, Milton Abbas; evaluation 2018

A trench evaluation was carried out on behalf of Milton Abbey School in connection with the building of a new manege. A gradiometer survey had previously indicated anomalies that may have had archaeological origins. Two trenches measuring 15m by 1m were machine-excavated by tracked mechanical excavator with toothless bucket to the depth of natural subsoil. Trench 1 was situated in the lower portion of the development area towards is right hand boundary and Trench 2 was located in the upper part of the site towards the left hand boundary. There were no archaeoogical deposits found and the anomalies thought to be features of the geology. A very small assemblage of finds consisted of post-medieval pottery found in a sub-soil horizon probably of natural hillwash in Trench 2. A dense layer of gravels, along with the base of a seemingly associated concrete stanchion and metal post, revealed below the topsoil horizon in Trench 1 are possibly associated with a former tennis court on the site. A depth of subsoil representing a colluvial (hilllwash) horizon was present in both trenches. The trench evaluation has demonstrated that no archaeological deposits are likely to be present within the application area. Those artefacts that were collected could derive from manuring of arable fields in the post-medieval period in the area and are of no archaeological significance.