Information for record number MWA12035:
Pit alignments, ditches and circular feature to the North of Lea Marston, Lea Marston Parish

Summary Two parallel pit alignments that in places become continuous ditches, a third ditch set 40m to the east of the pit alignments and a diffusely defined circular feature, which may be a degraded ring ditch, appear on aerial photographs. Area has been used for mineral extraction and has been landscaped.
What Is It?  
Type: Multiple Ditch System, Ditched Enclosure, Pit Alignment, Ring Ditch, Interrupted Ditch System
Period: Late Prehistoric (4000 BC - 42 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Lea Marston
District: North Warwickshire, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 20 94
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection Local
Description

  
Source Number  

1 Two parallel pit alignments that in places become continuous ditches, a third ditch set 40m to the east of the pit alignments and a diffusely defined circular feature, which may be a degraded ring ditch, appear on aerial photographs. Area has been used for mineral extraction and has been landscaped. The linear features dissapear as they cross the northern field boundary but shorter lengths of pit alignments and ditches are evident 50m to the north and appear to be continuations of the longer features.
2 Part of this complex is a 250m long multiple ditched feature and pit alignment, described as Neolithic.
 
Sources
Source No: 1
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP2094/2 (CUCAP Ref ABP 73)
Author/originator: CUCAP
Date: 29 Jun 1960
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: SP2094/2
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Unpublished document
Title: Archaeological Resource Assessment of the Aggregates Producing Areas of Warwickshire
Author/originator: Magnus Alexander with S Palmer and L Chadd
Date: 2007
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
back to top

Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
technique Aerial Photograph Aerial photographs are taken during an aerial survey, which involves looking at the ground from above. It is usually easier to see cropmarks and earthworks when they are viewed from above. Aerial photographs help archaeologists to record what they see and to identify new sites. There are two kinds of aerial photographs; oblique and vertical. back
period Prehistoric About 500,000 BC to 42 AD

The Prehistoric period covers all the periods from the Palaeolithic to the end of the Iron Age.
This is a time when people did not write anything down so there is no documentary evidence for archaeologists to look at. Instead, the archaeologists look at the material culture belonging to the people and the places where they lived for clues about their way of life.

The Prehistoric period is divided into the Early Prehistoric and Later Prehistoric.
The Early Prehistoric period covers the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic periods.
The Later Prehistoric period covers Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age times.
more -> 		back
period Neolithic About 4000 BC to 2351 BC

The word ‘Neolithic’ means ‘New Stone Age’. Archaeologists split up the Neolithic period into three phases; early, middle and late. The Neolithic period comes after the Mesolithic period and before the Bronze Age.

People in the Neolithic period hunted and gathered food as their ancestors had but they were also began to farm. They kept animals and grew crops. This meant that they were able to settle more permanently in one location instead of constantly moving from place to place to look for food.
more -> 		back
monument MULTIPLE DITCH SYSTEM * A multiple, parallel arrangement of linear earthwork ditches, usually accompanied by banks, and often of considerable territorial extent. Usually of later prehistoric or Roman date. back
monument FEATURE * Areas of indeterminate function. back
monument DITCHED ENCLOSURE * An area of land enclosed by one or several boundary ditches. Double index with a term to indicate the shape of the enclosure where known. back
monument INTERRUPTED DITCH SYSTEM * Ditches interrupted by wide, regular causeways. Each section of ditch is about 30-40m long, and each causeway is 10-15m wide. In some cases, a network of fields has been created. Found mainly in the South East of England. back
monument PIT ALIGNMENT * A single line, or pair of roughly parallel lines, of pits set at intervals along a common axis or series of axes. The pits are not thought to have held posts. back
monument LINEAR FEATURE * A length of straight, curved or angled earthwork or cropmark of uncertain date or function. back
monument RING DITCH * Circular or near circular ditches, usually seen as cropmarks. Use the term where the function is unknown. Ring ditches may be the remains of ploughed out round barrows, round houses, or of modern features such as searchlight emplacements. back
monument DITCH * A long and narrow hollow or trench dug in the ground, often used to carry water though it may be dry for much of the year. back
monument FIELD BOUNDARY * The limit line of a field. back
monument CROSS * A free-standing structure, in the form of a cross (+), symbolizing the structure on which Jesus Christ was crucified and sacred to the Christian faith. Use specific type where known. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record