Site Diary: Trench 7

Pottery and platform?

Unable to contain ourselves we have decided to open up a seventh trench, this time within the field itself. It has been laid out because in the first test pit we dug we discovered 10 sherds of unabraded later prehistoric pottery and numerous burnt stones.

Such high densities of pottery have usually been associated with buildings on Gardom's Edge, except for a deliberate deposit of pottery against a cairn investigated in 1997 (Interim 1997). High quantities of pot sherds were found outside the entrance of the circular building dug in 1995, and were found both outside and inside the buildings of Trench 1 begun last year and continued this year (see this year's diary for Trench 1).

We also think there may be a building because around the test pit there appears to be a very slight terrace which can be seen in the gently sloping ground of the field. The new trench measures 11 metres by 11 metres and has already been deturfed, during which some flintwork has been found.