Information for record number MWA6803:
Poss Enclosure 550m N of Potford's Dam, Cawston

Summary An enclosure is visible as a cropmark on aerial photographs. It represent the remains of a Prehistoric settlement. It is situated 600m north west of Cawston.
What Is It?  
Type: Enclosure
Period: Early Neolithic - Romano-British (4000 BC - 409 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Dunchurch
District: Rugby, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 46 73
(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 AP.
2 Two sides of a possible rectangular enclosure can be identified on air photographs. There is also ploughed-out ridge and furrow cultivation in this location, and the relationship of the enclosure with this is not clear.
3 Possibly a later Prehistoric farmstead surrounded by enclosure ditches.
4 Dating narrowed to within the Neolithic and Romano British periods.
 
Sources
Source No: 1
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP2149
Author/originator: Pickering J
Date: 1975
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: SP2149:C
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Evaluation Report
Title: A426 Rugby Western Bypass Stage 2 Survey
Author/originator: Warwickshire Museum
Date: 1996
Page Number: 27
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Unpublished document
Title: Unpublished Document
Author/originator: Hodgson J C
Date: 1993
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 4
Source Type: Verbal communication
Title: Aggregates Assessment
Author/originator: Stuart Palmer
Date: 2006
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
technique Cropmark Cropmarks appear as light and dark marks in growing and ripening crops. These marks relate to differences in the soil below. For example, parched lines of grass may indicate stone walls. Crops that grow over stone features often ripen more quickly and are shorter than the surrounding crop. This is because there is less moisture in the soil where the wall lies.

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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.
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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.
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monument SETTLEMENT * A small concentration of dwellings. back
monument RIDGE AND FURROW * A series of long, raised ridges separated by ditches used to prepare the ground for arable cultivation. This was a technique, characteristic of the medieval period. back
monument RECTANGULAR ENCLOSURE * A rectangular shaped area of land enclosed by a boundary ditch, bank, wall, palisade or similar barrier. back
monument FARMSTEAD * The homestead of a farm consisting of a farmhouse and working farm buildings, with yards, other working areas and usually a garden to the house. back
monument ENCLOSURE * An area of land enclosed by a boundary ditch, bank, wall, palisade or other similar barrier. Use specific type where known. 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

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record