Colchester Archaeological Trust

CAT Report 806: summary

Archaeological monitoring at Badliss Hall, Ardleigh, Essex: November 2014
by Adam Wightman (with contributions from Stephen Benfield)

Date report completed: January 2015
Location: Badliss Hall, Ardleigh, Essex
Map reference(s): TM 606708 229807
File size: 2,447 kb
Project type: Archaeological monitoring
Significance of the results: neg
Keywords: -

Summary. This is the archive report on the archaeological monitoring carried out at Badliss Hall, Ardleigh, Essex (NGR TM 606708 229807). The site is located to the east of Ardleigh village centre off Home Farm Lane. The archaeological monitoring was undertaken during the excavation of foundation trenches for an extension on the north side of the existing property. The aim of the monitoring was to identify and record any surviving archaeological deposits affected by the groundworks. Badliss Hall is a Grade II listed building which originated in the 16th century or earlier. Investigations on other late-medieval and post-medieval sites in Essex have shown the potential for the remains of earlier settlements that precede standing buildings. Therefore, it is possible that archaeological deposits deriving from any such settlement may have survived within the footprint of the proposed extension. The trenches were excavated through deposits dated to the 18th/19th and 20th centuries based on the finds dating evidence. A single prehistoric flint flake and 17th-century pottery sherds were also recovered from these contexts. No archaeological features or structural remains from earlier building phases were identified during the archaeological monitoring.