Site Event/Activity record ESF21993 - Excavation, Intermediate School Gym, RAF Lakenheath

PROJECT DETAILS An excavation was carried out prior to the construction of a new school gym on land at the intermediate school, RAF Lakenheath. The excavation identified a section of a possible penannular ring ditch cut by a series of Roman boundary ditches that re-defined the enclosed area into part of a larger sub-rectangular enclosure recorded within the bounds of the original ring ditch and enclosures. The structure consisted of two rows of tightly packed postholes forming the north and south walls. Several slightly larger and more generously spaced postholes towards the western side of the structure suggest an entrance of some kind whilst the west side of the building appears to have been left open. Portions of a crushed chalk floor survived within the structure's interior as well as two large pits which produced small quantities of Late Iron Age pottery. The structure and parts of the enclosure ditches were sealed by localised reddish brown silt believed to be the decayed remnants of the roof and walls. An Aucissa brooch dated to AD43-75 was discovered at the interface between this silt and the interior ground level. Project status: Complete Yes, Validated Yes Previous/Future Work: Previous Yes, Future Not known Associated Identifiers: Sitecode ERL 214 Project Type: Field evaluation Development Type: Public building (e.g. school, church, hospital, medical centre, law courts etc.) Methods and Techniques: ''Targeted Trenches'' Position in the Planning Process: Pre-application Reason for Investigation: Direction from Local Planning Authority - PPS Site status: Area of Archaeological Importance (AAI) Current Land use: Other 2 - In use as a building Monument Type(s)/Period(s): PIT Roman, DITCH Late Iron Age , POSTHOLE Roman, PIT Late Iron Age , DITCH Roman, FLOOR Roman, BUILDING Roman Artefact Type(s)/Period(s): POT Roman, POT Late Prehistoric, AUCISSA BROOCH Roman, COIN Roman PROJECT LOCATION Area 1300.00 Square metres Grid Reference: TL572660280245 Point Height 10.07 - 10.77 metres PROJECT CREATOR(S) Brief originator: Local Authority Archaeologist and/or Planning Authority/advisory body Design originator: Jude Plouviez Director/Manager: Jo Caruth Supervisor: A Beverton DIGITAL ARCHIVE Recipient: Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service ID: ERL 214 Contents: 'Animal Bones', 'Stratigraphic', 'Survey' Media: 'Database', 'GIS', 'Images raster / digital photography', 'Spreadsheets', 'Survey', 'Text' PAPER ARCHIVE Recipient: Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service Contents: 'Survey' Media: 'Context sheet', 'Photograph', 'Plan', 'Report', 'Section', 'Survey ', 'Unpublished Text' PHYSICAL ARCHIVE Recipient: Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service ID: ERL 214 Contents: 'Animal Bones', 'Ceramics', 'Worked stone/lithics' BIBLIOGRAPHY Publication Type: Grey literature (unpublished document/manuscript) Title: Intermediate School Gym, RAF Lakenheath, Lakenheath, ERL 214 Author(s)/Editor(s): Beverton, Andrew.,V. Other Bibliographic Details: 2012/017 Date: 2012 Issuer/Publisher: SCCAS Place of Issue or Publication: Bury St Edmunds Description: Ringbound report on white paper following SCCAS 2012 Excavation template