Bronze Age

Bronze Age Pottery Discovered In Water Mill Way

“is of significance say experts”

“If we were able to go back in time ...around 1,500 BC we would see a landscape of small settlements, fields and track ways. This is the origin of the sort of rural English landscape that we would be familiar with today.” (see footnotes T5)

(If you are an academic you may wish to skip this section.)

During my extensive research online of the history of Hanworth I had come across a mention of an archaeological dig carried out in Water Mill Way. The finds being pieces of broken pottery from 3,000 years ago.

Wow! I was amazed. When did that take place? Why does no one speak of it? And where are the finds that where made? The link took me to the London Archaeological Archive and Research Centre (LAARC). In January 1994 London and Quadrant Housing were redevoloping the site for housing; demolishing Basden, Watermill, Evans and Beach House. (see map below)

I quickly whizzed off an email to LAARC asking if they had more info on the dig. After only a couple of emails I was given an appointment to visit the centre and view the finds...

Steve Tucker (in charge of General Finds) is extremely knowledgeable and is able to pass on his expertise in such a way that you did not feel at all intimidated but rather as if you were a star pupil! He placed a cardboard box on the desk – it was about the size I expected: shoebox, small shoebox. Not getting my hopes up too much I gazed at the 3,000 years old sherds of pottery. 6 pieces about 1” long and ½ ” wide plus 10 or more pieces about thumbnail size. My first thought was, that they looked like lumps of tarmac with white specks.

I was amazed that anyone could identify the bits as pottery. I knew that it would have taken an expert to find these pieces. I was asked if I wanted to handle them, if I put on gloves, but to be careful as they are extremely delicate. No, thanks, said I.

Steve asked if I had noticed the white specks. He explained they were probably included in the unfired pottery as an aid in the firing process. He then fetched a piece of Roman pottery for me to compare. The Roman piece looked much like a terracotta pot of today whereas as “our” pieces were black on the inside and brown on the outside plus the white specks (looked all the same colour to me until it was pointed out). I was then given two reports to look at and take notes from.

The measurements in the trenches are taken from sea-level e.g. the land is 15m above sea level – dig down ½ metre, then the measurement will be 14.5m above sea level; rather than digging down 1 metre and saying the measurement is 1 metre. (see footnotes)

The work was carried out with reference to PPG 16: Planning Policy Guidance 16: Archaeology and Planning, commonly abbreviated as PPG 16, was a document produced by the British Government to advise local planning authorities on the treatment of archaeology within the planning process. It was introduced in November 1990 following public outcry after a number of high profile scandals such as the threatened destruction of the Rose Theatre in London by developers. The work is intended to be undertaken in advance of any planning consent being granted but often happens to satisfy a planning condition placed on an application for development, that is once the principle of development on the land has already been established. (see footnotes)

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This report is of the trial pits carried our to ascertain the need for a more extensive dig:

A Watching Brief October 1993

Re: 16 Trial Pits

The presence in some of the trial pits of post-medieval buried soils and C19 land drains indicates the survival of strata antedating the C20 development. This suggests that in some parts of the survey area there has been relatively little modern disturbance and destruction of earlier strata, therefore the site may have considerable archaeological potential.

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An Archaeological Evaluation

Museum Of London Archaeological Service

January 1994 BSH 93 TQ 13134 72563

Prehistoric pottery found in level 9

Recommended by English Heritage archaeological advisors to London Borough of Hounslow that evaluation excavation take place on the site.

With the light alluvial soil, a ready supply of water and of fish, waterfowl and game and of the river valley as conduits for communication and trade it is likely to account for the popularity of such locations in the prehistoric period.

Dig locations were selected to sample areas of greatest potential impact of the new development and to produce a representative sample across the site. In total 7 trenches were dug.

Questions:

1. To assess whether early features extend across the site.

2. To assess in particular whether prehistoric occupation was attracted to riverside sites.

3. To attempt to quantify the intensity and nature of such occupation if present and to ascertain how this changed over the length of human occupation.

Gatfield Grove

Trench 3 Trench 2 Trench 1

Trench 4

Basden Grove

Trench 5 trench 6

Trench 7

Evans Grove

RESULTS

Trench 1

Excavated by excavator, then partial hand and cleaning of archaeological features.

+16.53m +15.64 OD (see footnote) Dark brown humic silt clay with occasional pebbles covered by turf.

+16.48m +15.61 OD Yellow sand & gravel with admixtures of silt plus C20 brick concrete and pieces of scrap iron including corrugated sheeting.

+16.07m +15.89 OD Grey-light-yellow grey clay containing very infrequent tile fragments.

+15.82m+15.61 OD Mid brown silty clay with occasional pebbles. It contains fragments of charcoal and fragments of post-medieval brick and tile.

+15.80m+15.56 OD Mid grey/brown sandy clay C18-19 fragments.

+15.60m+15.29 OD Dark brown/black sandy clay, twigs, root, leaf

+15.34m +15.25 Soft light grey sand, organic staining, wood, root, and twigs

Excavation ceased at +15.25 as hit ground water.

Trench 5

The presence of a cut feature is of significance. Its fill is undatable

Trench 6

Sherds of pottery in brickearth – possible part of one or two vessels. Reduced\oxidised ware.

Black on the interior and buff brown or red brown on exteriorTempered with angular quartzite grits.One sherd of rim, lipless and faint thumb impression.3 base sherds, which, with rim sherd probably came from a shallow hand-made bowl. Provisionally dated to early 1st Millennium BC Late Bronze or Early Iron age – the former is the better prospect. The presence of possible late Bronze Age pottery is of significance for though it provenance is not secure the close association of sherds from a single vessel suggests that the assemblage is likely to have been derived from or near the find spot. If so it represents the first evidence of prehistoric activity in that part of West London.

Location of trench 6

footnotes:

The UK Fundamental Benchmark

The Tidal Observatory was established to determine the mean sea level that is the starting point for levelling in the UK.

wikipedia article explaining benchmarks

wikipedia article explaining OD