Colchester Archaeological Trust

CAT Report 463: summary

37 Oaks Drive, Colchester, Essex
by Stephen Benfield

Date report completed: 18 March 2008
Location: Colchester
Map reference(s): TL98822517
File size: 60 kb
Project type: Watching brief
Significance of the results:
Keywords: Roman

Summary. The two footing trenches had been excavated into natural sand at their base. For most of their length the footing trenches had been cut through a large feature (F1) filled with medium-dark brown sandy loam. F1 extended to the west and north at least as far as the existing house. At the west end of the south footing trench, the base of F1 approximately coincided with the base of the trench. The south-western edge of F1 was located on the east side of the footing trenches where the natural sand rose up to the base of the garden topsoil. A small number of finds was recovered, including three sherds of Roman pottery, one of which is a large sherd datable to the 1st-2nd/3rd century, and one piece of animal bone which cannot be closely dated. The size of the feature F1, the nature of the surrounding natural (sand), and the date of the finds recovered from the fill, all suggest that F1 is a Roman sand quarry.