Colchester Archaeological Trust

CAT Report 1298: summary

A Middle Bronze Age cemetery: archaeological excavation on Area B of the Colchester North development, Colchester, Essex CO4 6AH: May 2018
by Laura Pooley (with contributions from Stephen Benfield, Julie Curl, Lisa Gray, Sarah Carter, Ben Holloway, Emma Holloway )

Date report completed: September 2018
Location: Area B of the Colchester North development, Colchester, Essex CO4 6AH
Map reference(s): TL 984 238
File size: kb
Project type: Excavation
Significance of the results:
Keywords:

Summary. An archaeological excavation was carried out on Area B of the Colchester North development, Colchester, Essex in advance of the construction of urban residential, commercial and community buildings and associated works.

Excavation revealed a small Middle Bronze Age cemetery consisting of one definite (F8) and two probable cremation burials (F10 and F12) in a small cluster to the southsoutheast of two prehistoric ring-ditches. All three burials contained the disturbed remains of Ardleigh-style Deverel-Rimbury cremation urns, but only F8 included a small quantity of cremated human bone. This bone produced a 2-sigma calibrated radiocarbon date (at 95.4% confidence) of 1374 to 1125 BC. No dating evidence was recovered from the ring-ditches.

Three possible prehistoric features (two pits and a posthole), two post-medieval/ modern ditches/erosion hollows and two natural features/tree-throws were also excavated.