Information for record number MWA4647:
Medieval Boundary Ditch to S of Wibtoft Church

Summary A boundary ditch of Medieval date. The ditch is visible as an earthwork. It marks the eastern edge of Wibtoft village.
What Is It?  
Type: Boundary Ditch, Ditch
Period: Medieval (1066 AD - 1539 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Wibtoft
District: Rugby, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 47 87
(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
Picture(s) attached

 
Description

 
Source Number  

1 The E edge of Wibtoft village is delimited by a deep, partially waterfilled ditch. The largest section of the ditch is approximately 75m long, 12m wide and up to 1.5m deep. The ditch is partly waterfilled, being fed by a spring and may originally have held water along the whole of its length. There are traces of further lengths of ditch to the N of the church which again look capable of having held water. There are also traces of a hollow way, a building terrace and extensive ridge and furrow.
2 Plan.
 
Sources

Source No: 2
Source Type: Plan
Title: SMR Card
Author/originator: IRM
Date:
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: PRN 4647
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Record Card/Form
Title: SMR Card
Author/originator: IRM
Date: 1985
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: PRN 4572
   
Images:  
Plan showing a boundary ditch at Wibtoft
Copyright: Warwickshire County Council
Date: 1985
Click here for larger image  
 
Boundary Ditch, Wibtoft
Copyright: Warwickshire County Council
Date: 1990
Click here for larger image  
 
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
source SMR Card Sites and Monuments Record Card. The Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record began to be developed during the 1970s. The details of individual archaeological sites and findspots were written on record cards. These record cards were used until the 1990s, when their details were entered on to a computerised system. The record cards are still kept at the office of 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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period Medieval 1066 AD to 1539 AD (the 11th century AD to the 16th century AD)

The medieval period comes after the Saxon period and before the post medieval period.

The Medieval period begins in 1066 AD.
This was the year that the Normans, led by William the Conqueror (1066 – 1087), invaded England and defeated Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings in East Sussex.
The Medieval period includes the first half of the Tudor period (1485 – 1603 AD), when the Tudor family reigned in England and eventually in Scotland too.

The end of the Medieval period is marked by Henry VIII’s (1509 – 1547) order for the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the years running up to 1539 AD. The whole of this period is sometimes called the Middle Ages.
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monument VILLAGE * A collection of dwelling-houses and other buildings, usually larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a simpler organisation and administration than the latter. back
monument BUILDING * A structure with a roof to provide shelter from the weather for occupants or contents. Use specific type where known. 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 CHURCH * A building used for public Christian worship. Use more specific type where known. back
monument BOUNDARY DITCH * A ditch that indicates the limit of an area or a piece of land. 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 SPRING * A point where water issues naturally from the rock or soil onto the ground or into a body of surface water. back
monument EARTHWORK * A bank or mound of earth used as a rampart or fortification. back
monument HOLLOW WAY * A way, path or road through a cutting. back
monument TERRACE * A row of houses attached to and adjoining one another and planned and built as one unit. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record