EDO6538 - Chickerell; observations and recording 2017

Observations and recording by Wessex Archaeology during the excavation and enlargement of two ponds to make four ponds in an area covering 800m2. Excavation was to a depth of up to 1.80m and carried out mechanically. The monitored works covered a total of 800m². The ponds were located to the east and west of an area of archaeological potential identified in a geophysical survey and archaeological evaluation by Cotswold Archaeology in 2016. This consisted of a group of field system enclosure ditches and gullies dated to the latter part of the Romano-British period (post AD 220-250) most likely related to a settlement that lies outside the development area. The watching brief revealed a further enclosure within the field system, and a group of three pits, two of which may well have been natural. Evidence was recovered of some phasing within the field system, in the form of re-cutting of the enclosure and a date from the earlier part of the Romano-British period (1st-2nd Century AD).