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LETTERS • NEWS • CONTEXT • COMMENT The latest from the past Re-excavating Boles Barrow Over the course of a very rainy week this past March, Wessex Archaeology and volunteers from Operation Nightingale, led by DIO archaeologist Richard Osgood, carried out a small-scale excavation of Boles Barrow (also known as Bowl’s Barrow), a Neolithic long barrow located near Heytesbury, approximately ten miles west of Stonehenge. Boles Barrow was first investigated in 1801 by the antiquarian William Cunnington, with subsequent excavations carried out first by John Thurnam in 1864 and then by William Cunnington Jr (the original Cunnington’s grandson) in 1885. It is perhaps best known as the hypothesised origin of the bluestone now on display in Salisbury Museum, supposedly found during the elder Cunnington’s work on the site, although evidence for this link is tenuous at best. There are still intriguing aspects to the barrow, though, as all three 19th-century excavations recovered human remains, and osteological analysis (both historical and more recent) of these indicates that the individuals possibly suffered violent deaths. This year’s excavation, the first in over 130 years, aimed to find out more about the site, but also to assess how successful recent efforts to prevent badger damage to Salisbury Plain heritage sites have been, as well as to see how much of the archaeology was still intact after all the 19thcentury digging. All three aims proved successful. While stripping the overlying turf, the team quickly found that the mesh that had previously been laid over the site to deter badgers had not only done its job, but had also held up remarkably well with little signs of corrosion. They also determined that the site remains very well preserved despite the three previous investigations. In this latest excavation, the team dug a 15m x 3m trench right at the top of the mound, soon uncovering the chalk layer mentioned by antiquarians, which is believed to encapsulate the entire barrow. They then came across the dark layer of soil that their predecessors had also noted (and had dramatically described as a layer of ‘congealed blood’); analysis of this layer’s composition is still ongoing, but it is highly doubtful that the antiquarians got this one right. As for the finds, a small number of flint scatters and animal teeth were recovered. While no bluestones were found, a few small sarsen stones were, which seems to coincide with Cunnington’s description of the stones he found at the site in 1801, writing: ‘The stones that composed so large a part of this ridge over the bodies are the same species of stone as the very large stones at Stonehenge.’ These newly discovered sarsens are now undergoing analysis to investigate their origins. In addition to the Neolithic discoveries, the team also found evidence of some more modern offerings: cans of steak and kidney pudding, which were probably interred by infantrymen on the site, perhaps hoping to add to its history. Research linked to the project has also uncovered a lot of archival evidence hiding in plain sight, including Stuart Piggott’s photos of the site from the 1930s, which show that a water tank had once sat on top of the mound; and a scrapbook, found in the Wiltshire Museum archives, with photos and plans of the 1880s excavation. With post-excavation analysis still ongoing and a possible future excavation in the works, this will not be the final word on Boles Barrow. ills 2023 : Harvey M PHOTO News in brief London’s ‘ot he r ’ Roman city wall listed Three sections of what has been called London’s ‘other’ Roman city wall, which ran along the riverbank before connecting with its terrestrial counterparts, have been recently added to the National Heritage List for England as scheduled monuments. This riverside wall was built in the 3rd century and effectively blocked the city’s connection to the quayside, suggesting that at the time defence was more important than river trade. While most of the wall has been destroyed in the intervening centuries, three sections were found and recorded during archaeological investigations by MOLA in 2006-2016. Well-preserved wooden parts of the Roman and medieval wharfs and quays were also discovered, and have been included in the new designation; all of these structures have now been preserved in situ. Damage to heritage sites Recently, there have been some serious reports of destruction of some of our national heritage sites. In April, several large holes were found at Gosbecks Archaeological Park in Colchester, Essex – a scheduled Iron Age and Roman site that includes a theatre as well as a : MOLA PHOTO 8 JULY 2023
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NEWS ices Serv , Sumo Stanford : Adam PHOTO Centuries of settlement uncovered in Oxfordshire Ongoing excavations on the grounds of the Besselsleigh estate in southwest Oxfordshire are revealing a rich palimpsest of settlement activity spanning the Roman period through to the modern day, bringing to life a once-thriving place that had been forgotten over time. The team – led by Jane Harrison, along with students from the Department for Continuing Education at the University of Oxford and local volunteers, as well as those that cut their teeth on Archeox: the East Oxford Archaeology & History Project (see CA 245 and CA 371) – began excavating the site in 2021 as part of a larger project examining the settlement of this part of south-west Oxfordshire, which has been largely unexplored archaeologically. After returning this spring for a second season, the team have made even more discoveries. The earliest hints of human activity on the site came in the form of some Mesolithic and Neolithic worked flints, but the first major deposits consist of significant amounts of Roman pottery, including Samian ware, as well as coins and a writing stylus from this period. Although no structures have been found so far, these finds are in vastly larger quantities than previous test pits dug in the surrounding areas have uncovered, suggesting that this site was probably settled during the Roman period. The project’s early medieval finds, meanwhile, are too ephemeral to determine whether occupation for this period was continuous, although evidence of pits and semicellars, along with pottery, hairpins, and other small finds, suggest an Anglo- axon settlement was once located there. Things become clearer from the time of the Domesday Book onwards, however, as the site is relatively well documented as a manorial estate that saw several changes in ownership and usage over subsequent centuries. The archaeological record from this time has also been rich with discoveries, showing clear stratigraphy of at least three main phases of construction and renovation during the later medieval period. The first substantial remains to be uncovered were thick stone walls, which associated pottery suggests were built immediately after the Norman Conquest, when the estate was part of Abingdon Abbey, before it was passed to a minor lord known as William the Chamberlain. There were then significant changes to the manor in the 14th century, probably done by the Bessels family who owned it at this time, including the installation of lead piping – a relatively rare discovery for a manor house from this period and possibly influenced by ecclesiastical ties. Another refurbishment, probably in the 16th century, might reflect the time that the manor was owned by the Fettiplace family. The estate was then purchased by the Speaker of the Long Parliament, William enthall, in 1634, and the excavations have revealed that it was around this time that the footprints of the house and grounds underwent a major redesign, with the addition of landscaped gardens, including an elaborately laid cobblestone terrace. The associated village also appears to have been ‘relocated’ at this time, moved a kilometre north, with the original buildings probably demolished and covered over with sand to make way for these upgrades. As the face of the Long Parliament, Lenthall’s properties drew the attention of the Royalists, and the Besselsleigh manor was attacked and badly damaged by a group of 200 Royalists from Oxford. While post-excavation analysis will hopefully be able to tell us more, there is some evidence of bullets and burning in these layers, which may be from this event. In the 1690s, the manor then became a girls’ finishing school, where young men studying at the nearby University of Oxford could find virgins of uality’, with masques frequently held there in the hopes of leading to marriages. Parts of the music that was written for one of these masques, ‘Orpheus and Eurydice’, still survives at the Music Library in Oxford. As for the archaeology, finds from this period reflect the site’s refined new occupants, including delicate silver thimbles and some fine and daintily decorated Chinese porcelain. The manor reverted to a farmed estate in the 18th century, with some rare pottery found from this period, including ceramic chicken feeders and crucibles for laboratory-style experiments. It then burnt down in 17 4 and was subse uently demolished before a new manor was built a couple of hundred metres to the west, where it still survives today. Romano-Celtic temple – suggesting that illegal metal-detecting, or ‘nighthawking’, had taken place there. Colchester City Council is now working with Essex Police to provide more patrols of the park. Also in April, Linlithgow Palace in West Lothian was vandalised, with several walls and flagstone floors defaced with spray paint as well as some physical damage to the ornate fountain, which was built for James V in 1538. Historic Environment Scotland is now working to remove the paint and limit the damage, while Police Scotland investigates the incident. Virtual-reality roundhouse MOLA’s creative team are constructing a virtual roundhouse, based on one found during their excavations in advance of the proposed A42 lack Cat to Caxton Gibbet improvement scheme (see CA 385). Since roundhouses are typically only represented in the ground by their postholes, MOLA hopes to bring the past to life through this VR experience, which will allow groups to explore an Iron Age dwelling, complete with 3D models of pottery and other objects found during the excavations. This will allow different communities to be able to engage with the archaeology as well as to ‘handle’ the artefacts. The product is currently being tested in communities along the route of the A42 but will hopefully be available to the general public in due course. ISSUE 400 9

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LETTERS • NEWS • CONTEXT • COMMENT

The latest from the past Re-excavating Boles Barrow

Over the course of a very rainy week this past March, Wessex Archaeology and volunteers from Operation Nightingale, led by DIO archaeologist Richard Osgood, carried out a small-scale excavation of Boles Barrow (also known as Bowl’s Barrow), a Neolithic long barrow located near Heytesbury, approximately ten miles west of Stonehenge.

Boles Barrow was first investigated in 1801 by the antiquarian William Cunnington, with subsequent excavations carried out first by John Thurnam in 1864 and then by William Cunnington Jr (the original Cunnington’s grandson) in 1885. It is perhaps best known as the hypothesised origin of the bluestone now on display in Salisbury Museum, supposedly found during the elder Cunnington’s work on the site, although evidence for this link is tenuous at best. There are still intriguing aspects to the barrow, though, as all three 19th-century excavations recovered human remains, and osteological analysis (both historical and more recent) of these indicates that the individuals possibly suffered violent deaths.

This year’s excavation, the first in over 130 years, aimed to find out more about the site, but also to assess how successful recent efforts to prevent badger damage to Salisbury Plain heritage sites have been, as well as to see how much of the archaeology was still intact after all the 19thcentury digging.

All three aims proved successful. While stripping the overlying turf, the team quickly found that the mesh that had previously been laid over the site to deter badgers had not only done its job, but had also held up remarkably well with little signs of corrosion. They also determined that the site remains very well preserved despite the three previous investigations. In this latest excavation, the team dug a 15m x 3m trench right at the top of the mound, soon uncovering the chalk layer mentioned by antiquarians, which is believed to encapsulate the entire barrow. They then came across the dark layer of soil that their predecessors had also noted (and had dramatically described as a layer of ‘congealed blood’); analysis of this layer’s composition is still ongoing, but it is highly doubtful that the antiquarians got this one right.

As for the finds, a small number of flint scatters and animal teeth were recovered. While no bluestones were found, a few small sarsen stones were, which seems to coincide with Cunnington’s description of the stones he found at the site in 1801, writing: ‘The stones that composed so large a part of this ridge over the bodies are the same species of stone as the very large stones at Stonehenge.’ These newly discovered sarsens are now undergoing analysis to investigate their origins.

In addition to the Neolithic discoveries, the team also found evidence of some more modern offerings: cans of steak and kidney pudding, which were probably interred by infantrymen on the site, perhaps hoping to add to its history. Research linked to the project has also uncovered a lot of archival evidence hiding in plain sight, including Stuart Piggott’s photos of the site from the 1930s, which show that a water tank had once sat on top of the mound; and a scrapbook, found in the Wiltshire Museum archives, with photos and plans of the 1880s excavation. With post-excavation analysis still ongoing and a possible future excavation in the works, this will not be the final word on Boles Barrow.

ills 2023

: Harvey M

PHOTO

News in brief

London’s ‘ot he r ’ Roman city wall listed Three sections of what has been called London’s ‘other’ Roman city wall, which ran along the riverbank before connecting with its terrestrial counterparts, have been recently added to the National Heritage List for England as scheduled monuments.

This riverside wall was built in the 3rd century and effectively blocked the city’s connection to the quayside, suggesting that at the time defence was more important than river trade. While most of the wall has been destroyed in the intervening centuries, three sections were found and recorded during archaeological investigations by MOLA in 2006-2016. Well-preserved wooden parts of the Roman and medieval wharfs and quays were also discovered, and have been included in the new designation; all of these structures have now been preserved in situ.

Damage to heritage sites Recently, there have been some serious reports of destruction of some of our national heritage sites. In April, several large holes were found at Gosbecks Archaeological Park in Colchester, Essex – a scheduled Iron Age and Roman site that includes a theatre as well as a

: MOLA

PHOTO

8

JULY 2023

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