Reports on excavations by Northamtonshire Archaeology (now MOLA) in the south-east Midlands region; Nineteen sites were investigated, dating primarily to the Iron Age, Roman and Anglo-Saxon periods.

Front Cover -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Contents -- Contributors -- Acknowledgements -- 1. Introduction -- Background -- Topography and geology -- Excavation strategy -- Structure of the report -- Archive -- Fig 1.1: Project location -- Fig 1.2: Land relief and site locations -- Fig 1.3: Geology and site locations -- 2. Neolithic and Early Bronze Age (c.4000-1450BC) -- Neolithic and early Bronze Age activity -- Worked flint -- 3. Middle Bronze Age to Early Iron Age (c.1450-400BC) -- A late Bronze Age/early Iron Age pit alignment near Seaton -- Middle Bronze Age to early Iron Age activity at Glaston -- Fig 3.1: Seaton, the pit alignment in excavation and geophysical survey -- Fig 3.2: Seaton, the excavated pit alignment -- Fig 3.3: Seaton, the pit alignment, looking north-east -- Fig 3.4: Seaton, pit 13 in the pit alignment, looking north-west (Scale 1m) -- Fig 3.5: Glaston, Bronze Age jar from Anglo-Saxon cremation burial B13 (Scale 20mm) -- 4. Middle to Late Iron Age (400 BC - 43 AD) -- Middle to late Iron Age settlement near Seaton -- Gullies 14, 18 and 37 -- Gully 51 -- Pit group (pits 47, 54, 72, 82 and 88) -- Pits 40, 49, 62, 66 and 69 -- Possible ditches 75 and 84 -- Pits 77 and 80 -- Pits 5, 7, 25 and 30 -- Iron Age ditches and a cremation burial near Thorpe by Water -- Middle to late Iron Age settlement near Caldecott -- Ditches 73 and 38 -- Features to the south of ditch 73 -- Pit 44 and posthole 63 -- Pits and postholes to the north of ditch 73 -- Cobbled surface, 78 -- Ditches to the north of ditch 73 -- Middle to late Iron Age settlement at Swinawe Barn, Corby -- The enclosure (ditches 22, 46 and 92) -- The roundhouses -- Other features -- Late Iron Age ditches near Thorpe Malsor -- Ditch 18 -- Ditch 52 -- Middle to late Iron Age settlement at Willows Nursery -- Other features -- Other linear ditches. The enclosure ditches, 15 and 39 -- Finds and environment evidence from the Iron Age settlements: -- The Iron Age pottery -- Seaton -- Caldecott -- Swinawe Barn, Corby -- Fabrics -- Forms and decoration -- Pottery distribution -- Chronology -- The assemblage from Roundhouse B -- Illustrated Iron Age pottery from Swinawe Barn (Fig 4.20) -- Thorpe Malsor -- Willows Nursery -- Faunal and environmental remains from the Iron Age settlements: -- Fired clay -- Seaton -- Swinawe Barn -- Human bone -- The animal bone -- Methodology -- Swinawe Barn, Corby -- Carcass representation and butchery -- Species representation and diet -- Animal husbandry -- Discussion -- Charred plant remains -- Swinawe Barn -- Radiocarbon dating -- Fig 4.1: Seaton, Iron Age settlement -- Fig 4.2: Seaton, sections of Iron Age pits -- Fig 4.3: Seaton, ditch 84, and pits 82 and 80, looking east (Scale 2m) -- Fig 4.4: Thorpe by Water, Iron Age and later features -- Fig 4.5: Caldecott, plan of Iron Age settlement (south) -- Fig 4.6: Caldecott, plan of Iron Age settlement (north) -- Fig 4.7: Caldecott, Sections of ditches and pit 44 -- Fig 4.8: Caldecott, Iron Age settlement, looking north-east -- Fig 4.9: Swinawe Barn, Iron Age enclosure and roundhouses -- Fig 4.10: Swinawe Barn, Sections of enclosure ditch -- Fig 4.11: Swinawe Barn, Roundhouse A, looking east -- Fig 4.12: Swinawe Barn, Sections of ring ditches and pits -- Fig 4.13: Swinawe Barn, pit 83 with animal bone deposit, looking west (Scale 1m) -- Fig 4.14: Thorpe Malsor, Iron Age settlement -- Fig 4.15: Thorpe Malsor, Sections of enclosure ditch -- Fig 4.16: Willows Nursery, Iron Age settlement -- Fig 4.17: Willows Nursery, Sections of enclosure ditches -- Fig 4.18: Willows Nursery, ditch 19 and gully 24, looking south-west (Scale 1m) -- Table 4.1: Seaton, quantification of Iron Age pottery. Fig 4.19: Caldecott, rim and base of scored ware jar from gully 36 (Scale 20mm) -- Table 4.2: Swinawe Barn, rim form quantification -- Table 4.3: Swinawe Barn, quantification of Iron Age pottery -- Table 4.4: Swinawe Barn, Pottery distribution in Roundhouse B -- Fig 4.20: Swinawe Barn, Iron Age pottery (1-7) (Scale 200mm) -- Fig 4.21: Willows Nursery, rim of a large storage jar from pit 24 -- Table 4.5: Swinawe Barn, quantification of fired clay -- Table 4.6: Thorpe by Water, quantification of cremated bone -- Table 4.7: Presence of major domesticates and ungulates for Iron Age sites -- Table 4.8: Presence of minor domesticates and wild species for Iron Age sites -- Table 4.10: Swinawe Barn, number of identified bones fragments -- Table 4.9: Swinawe Barn, animal bone condition and taphonomy -- Table 4.11: Swinawe Barn, representation of the main domesticates -- Table 4.12: Swinawe Barn, animal bone species representation (NISP) -- Table 4.13: Swinawe Barn, charred plant remains, Roundhouse A -- Table 4.14: Swinawe Barn, charred plant remains, Roundhouse B -- Table 4.15: Swinawe Barn, charred plant remains, Roundhouse C -- Table 4.16: Swinawe Barn, charred plant remains from pits -- Table 4.17: Swinawe Barn, charred plant remains from ditches -- Table 4.18: Swinawe Barn, radiocarbon dating for Roundhouse B -- 5. Roman Settlement (AD43 - AD450) -- A Roman enclosure and cremation burials near Gretton -- The Roman enclosure -- Roman cremation burials -- Late Roman settlement at Glaston -- Ditch 34 -- Roman settlement -- Roman activity near Seaton -- A Roman pit at Swinawe Barn, Corby -- Roman enclosures at Rushton -- The enclosure: ditches 12 and 21 -- The droveway: gullies 5 and 7 -- Gullies 9 and 17 -- A Roman ditch system at Violet Lane -- Roman settlement near Thorpe Malsor -- Earlier features, ditches 61, 63 and 128 and pit 67. The major ditch systems -- Pebbled surface 131 -- The pit group -- Other pits/postholes 74, 105 and 121 -- Roman settlement at White Hill Lodge -- A ditched enclosure system -- Droveway: ditches 35 and 41 -- Roman settlement near Great Cransley -- Ditch 25 -- Enclosure 1 -- Enclosure 2: ditches 13 and 17 -- Enclosure 3: ditch 11 -- Colluvium 58 -- Enclosure 4: ditch 44 -- The trackway: ditches 40 and 31/36 -- Finds from the Roman settlement: -- Methodology -- The Roman pottery from Thorpe Malsor (Figs 5.21-5.22) -- Ditch 112 (part of ditch system with ditches 72, 139, 117 and 145) -- Ditch 39 (part of ditch system with ditches 12 and 94, see below) -- Ditch 94 (part of ditch system with ditches 12, see above, and 39) -- Selected assemblages: -- Ditch 117 (part of ditch system with ditches 72, 112, 139 and 145) -- Ditch 139 (part of ditch system with ditches 72, 112, 117 and 145) -- Ditch 145 (part of ditch system with ditches 72, 112, 139 and 117) -- Ditch 150 (north end of site, aligned west-east) -- Pit 4 -- Illustrated vessels (Figs 5.21 and 5.22) -- Cross-feature joins -- Samian ware -- The Roman pottery from Great Cransley (Fig 5.23) -- Selected assemblages: -- Ditch 11, Enclosure 3, southern arm (same as ditch 23) -- Ditch 17 (Enclosure 2, southern arm) -- Ditch 23 (Enclosure 3, southern arm, same as ditch 7) -- Ditch 52 (late boundary, cutting trackway ditches, eastern side) -- Illustrated vessels (Fig 5.23) -- Pit 29, Enclosure 2 -- Other sites -- Roman fired clay and ceramic building material -- Gretton Road -- Rushton -- Seaton -- Thorpe Malsor -- White Hill Lodge -- Great Cransley -- Roman querns -- Thorpe Malsor -- Great Cransley -- Other Roman finds -- Glaston -- Gretton Road -- Thorpe Malsor -- Coins -- Copper alloy objects -- Copper casting debris -- Glass -- Iron -- Lead -- Worked bone -- Great Cransley -- White Hill Lodge. Faunal and environmental remains from the Roman settlements: -- Human bone -- Cremation burials from Gretton Road -- Infant burial from Thorpe Malsor -- The burial of infants during the Roman period in Britain -- Animal bone -- Thorpe Malsor -- Animal husbandry -- Carcass representation and butchery -- Species representation and diet -- Great Cransley -- White Hill Lodge -- Discussion -- Charred plant remains -- Thorpe Malsor -- Pit 4 -- Conclusions -- Fig 5.1: Glaston, plan of Roman ditch system -- Fig 5.2: Seaton, plan of Roman features -- Fig 5.3: Gretton Road, plan of Roman features -- Fig 5.4: Rushton, plan of Roman ditch system -- Fig 5.5: Rushton, Section of ditch 21 -- Fig 5.6: Violet Lane, plan of Roman ditch system -- Fig 5.7: Violet Lane, Roman ditches 15 and 19, looking east (Scale 1m) -- Fig 5.8: Thorpe Malsor, plan of Roman settlement -- Fig 5.9: Thorpe Malsor, general view of the site, looking south -- Fig 5.10: Thorpe Malsor, northern terminal of ditch 12, looking south (Scale 2m) -- Fig 5.11: Thorpe Malsor, Sections of ditches 117/119 and 79 -- Fig 5.12: Thorpe Malsor, ditch and pit sections -- Fig 5.13: White Hill Lodge, general view of Roman ditches, looking south -- Fig 5.14: White Hill Lodge, plan of Roman settlement -- Fig 5.15: White Hill Lodge, ditch sections -- Fig 5.16: White Hill Lodge, Roman ditch 44, looking south-west (Scale 2m) -- Fig 5.17: Great Cransley, plan of Roman ditch system -- Fig 5.18: Great Cransley, Sections of enclosure ditches -- Fig 5.19: Great Cransley, plan of Roman well 56 -- Fig 5.20: Great Cransley, Roman well 56, looking south (Scale 1m) -- Table 5.1: Thorpe Malsor, Roman pottery assemblage by principal fabrics -- Table 5.2: Thorpe Malsor, quantification of selected Roman pottery assemblages -- Table 5.3: Thorpe Malsor, ditch 39, percentages of principal fabrics. Table 5.4: Thorpe Malsor, ditch 94, percentages of principal fabrics.