Information for record number MWA6107:
Excavation of Hobditch at Tapster Lane, Lapworth

Summary Archaeological excavation of a linear earthwork dating to the Iron Age, part of a boundary known as the Hobditch. It is located 1km south east of Lapworth.
What Is It?  
Type: Linear Earthwork, Boundary
Period: Iron Age (800 BC - 42 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Lapworth
District: Warwick, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 16 70
(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 National - Old SMR PrefRef (Grade: )
Sites & Monuments Record
Description

  
Source Number  

1 East of Tapster Lane (SP 168 703) straight hedgerows continue the alignment of Hobditch to cross Lapworth Street.
2 1987: Excavation in advance of the construction of the M40 motorway confirmed that a continuous hedge at SP 1670 overlay part of the Hobditch earthwork. The remains consisted of a ditch about 2.7m deep (measuring from the contemporary ground surface) with a bank on its north side. A smaller ?ditch to its north side was also investigated. The only find was a sherd of undatable pottery, but radiocarbon samples were taken.
3 Slight traces of this earthwork were also visible under plough to the west of Tapster Lane.
4 No significant quantities of charcoal were visible in the bank or the lower ditch fills so samples had to be collected from secondary contexts. Two samples were submitted to Harwell for radiocarbon dating. One was taken from the secondary recut of the small northern ditch, a charcoally loam. A date of 2530+/-90 BP was obtained. This gives a calibrated range of 800-560 cal BC or 890-400 cal BC. The second, from the main ditch, did not contain sufficient carbon for radiocarbon dating.
 
Sources
Source No: 2
Source Type: Excavation Report
Title: WMA
Author/originator: SC
Date: 1987
Page Number: 46
Volume/Sheet: 30
   
Source No: 4
Source Type: Excavation Report
Title: TBAS vol 99
Author/originator: Cracknell S and Hingley R
Date: 1995
Page Number: 48-54
Volume/Sheet: 99
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Serial
Title: TBAS vol 85
Author/originator: Hutty B
Date: 1971
Page Number: 2
Volume/Sheet: 85
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Verbal communication
Title: R.C.Hingley personal comment
Author/originator: Hingley R C
Date: 1989
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
source TBAS Transactions of the Birmingham and Warwickshire Archaeological Society is a journal produced by the society annually. It contains articles about archaeological field work that has taken place in Birmingham and Warwickshire in previous years. Copies of the journal are kept by the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. back
source WMA West Midlands Archaeology. This publication contains a short description for each of the sites where archaeological work has taken place in the previous year. It covers Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, West Midlands and Worcestershire. Some of these descriptions include photographs, plans and drawings of the sites and/or the finds that have been discovered. The publication is produced by the Council For British Archaeology (CBA) West Midlands and is published annually. Copies are held at the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. back
technique Earthwork Earthworks can take the form of banks, ditches and mounds. They are usually created for a specific purpose. A bank, for example, might be the remains of a boundary between two or more fields. Some earthworks may be all that remains of a collapsed building, for example, the grassed-over remains of building foundations.

In the winter, when the sun is lower in the sky than during the other seasons, earthworks have larger shadows. From the air, archaeologists are able to see the patterns of the earthworks more easily. Earthworks can sometimes be confusing when viewed at ground level, but from above, the general plan is much clearer.

Archaeologists often carry out an aerial survey or an earthwork survey to help them understand the lumps and bumps they can see on the ground.
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technique excavation Archaeologists excavate sites so that they can find information and recover archaeological materials before they are destroyed by erosion, construction or changes in land-use.

Depending on how complicated and widespread the archaeological deposits are, excavation can be done by hand or with heavy machinery. Archaeologists may excavate a site in a number of ways; either by open area excavation, by digging a test pit or a trial trench.
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technique Radiocarbon Dating Another name for radiocarbon dating is C14 dating. It is used to find out how old some archaeological remains are. Archaeologists do this by measuring the amount of radioactive carbon left in samples of organic material (from the remains of plants or animals).

All organic materials contain radioactive and non-radioactive carbon in fixed amounts while they are part of living plants or animals. When the plant or animal dies the radioactive carbon starts to decay. By comparing the amount of radioactive carbon left in the organic material with the amount of stable carbon, archaeologists can find out how old it is.
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period Iron Age About 800 BC to 43 AD

The Iron Age comes after the Bronze Age and before the Roman period. It is a time when people developed the skills and knowledge to work and use iron, hence the name ‘Iron Age’ which is given to this period. Iron is a much tougher and more durable metal than bronze but it also requires more skill to make objects from it. People continued to use bronze during this period.
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monument BOUNDARY * The limit to an area as defined on a map or by a marker of some form, eg. BOUNDARY WALL. Use specific type where known. back
monument MOTORWAY * Fast arterial road with separate carriageways limited to motor vehicles back
monument LINEAR EARTHWORK * A substantial bank and ditch forming a major boundary between two adjacent landholdings. Most date from the late Bronze Age and Iron Age. 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 HEDGE * Usually a row of bushes or small trees planted closely together to form a boundary between pieces of land or at the sides of a road. back
monument ROW * A row of buildings built during different periods, as opposed to a TERRACE. 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
monument EARTHWORK * A bank or mound of earth used as a rampart or fortification. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record