Colchester Archaeological Trust

CAT Report 1226: summary

Archaeological evaluation and excavation on the site of the proposed M&S Food Hall, Kirby Road, Walton-on-the-Naze, Essex, CO14 8QP: September 2017 – January 2018
by Laura Pooley (with contributions from Stephen Benfield, Julie Curl, Lisa Gray, Ben Holloway, Emma Holloway)

Date report completed: April 2018
Location: Site of the proposed M&S Food Hall, Kirby Road, Walton-on-the-Naze, Essex, CO14 8QP
Map reference(s): TM 2501 2188
File size: kb
Project type: Evaluation and excavation
Significance of the results:
Keywords:

Summary. Archaeological evaluation (four trial-trenches) followed by an area excavation was carried out at the former Martello Caravan Park, Kirby Road, Walton-on-the-Naze on the site of the proposed new M&S Food Hall. Previous investigations on the Kirby Road redevelopment site have revealed a prehistoric landscape, predominantly of Bronze Age/Late Bronze Age date, with a smaller instances of Roman and medieval activity.

Investigations on the current development site revealed prehistoric activity dating from the Neolithic to the Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age. This consisted of three ditches, three pits, a ditch/pit and a cremation burial. The cremation burial contained the remains of an adult, over 25 years old. Radiocarbon dating on a sample of cremated bone produced a 2-sigma calibrated date (at 95.4% confidence) of 1190 to 996 BC for this burial.

An erosion hollow, probably used as a watering-hole or as a stock-holding pen, and two associated drainage ditches are probably of a Roman date. A small pit was also either of a Roman or later date.

Nine undated features (five postholes, three pits and a pit/tree-throw) were also excavated along with two natural features.