Early Roman small town at Elms Farm, Heybridge (EHER 17445)

Archaeological excavation in 1993 and 1994-1995 recorded an extensive Late Iron Age to Roman/early Saxon small town at Elms Farm, Heybridge. This record presents the evidence for the Early Roman period (mid 1st to early 2nd century) at the site. It should be considered alongside the other records for settlement at Elm Farm, especially records EHER 17446 and EHER 81914-81916 which record the other Roman evidence. This record also acts as a repository to bring together all information on the broad Roman era small town at Elms Farm where it has not been possible or useful to ascribe sub-periods in the original source material. The pottery suggests that the settlement had its heyday in the 1st century BC to 1st century AD (EHER 81914); though occupation spans the whole of the Roman period.

The following is a brief description of the work which has been undertaken at the site (see note below). 1993. Geophysical survey. Some of the features described below were detected during a geophysical survey, see EHER 81889. 1994. Trial trenching. In Trench 2 dark grey silty clay and gravel was exposed. It contained Roman tile and pottery sherds throughout the 0.8m of homogenous waterlogged deposits removed by machine, but no features were visible within them. <1> 1993 and 1994-1995. Archaeological excavations. The Early Roman period at Elms Farm was predominantly one of broad continuity and development following the creation of the Late Ion Age/Early Roman transition period settlement infrastructure (EHER 81914). With the essential infrastructure already laid down, there was little substantive change made to the roads or to the major enclosure systems within the various settlement zones (i.e. the central, northern, southern and hinterland zones). Functionally, there was generally also little change evident within the individual enclosures, excepting those of the Temple Precinct, which exhibits changing depositional practice and undergoes a second phase of remodelling in the early 2nd century, and the adjacent open areas, which are conjectured to adopt a support or service role in relation to the temple precinct. There appears to be some distinction evident between the settlement core and the peripheral activity around it. While at the centre, Roads 1 and 2 were periodically resurfaced, the 'side' Roads 3, 4 and 5 were only actively maintained at their western ends and rapidly become 'tracks' beyond the settlement core. The point at which they degenerate may be used to infer this boundary. It is notable that this broadly coincides with the frontage of the precinct as formalised in the transition period (EHER 81914). The area between Roads/tracks 3-5 remained open throughout the early Roman period as a clear, metalled-surfaced, space in front of the temple and the adjacent enclosure, with few early Roman features being permitted to encroach upon it. Indeed, it may be argued that the clearance of some transition period buildings on the peripheries of the central zone by or during the Early Roman period (pre-2nd century) may emphasise the active preservation and enhancement of this openness. In particular, the site of cleared Building 6 is subsequently resurfaced, perhaps in association with the remodelling of the religious focus. The regular strip enclosures of the Southern Zone endure, although their boundary ditches become infilled and presumably defunct by or during the start of the Early Roman period. It is presumed that these boundaries are perpetuated, perhaps being demarcated by hedges or fences instead. Reduced numbers of pits within its enclosures suggest some differing/changing disposal practice and/or land-use. Buildings are concentrated along the Road 3 frontage with the rear of the plots generally subdivided - presumably into gardens and/or animal pens. Peripheral areas of the settlement experience a degree of change too. While the system of in-fields and routeways of the Northern Zone are modified west of Road 1, the north bank of the watercourse is seemingly reclaimed and built up, after which at least part of it becomes the location of cemetery activity. The nature and location of mortuary practice in other parts of the Northern Hinterland Zone can also be seen to change, though its primary agricultural function remains constant. <2> <3> 1993. Metal detector survey. Metal detecting of the spoil heaps created by the removal of topsoil recovered a significant quantity of coins and small finds which spanned the Late Iron Age to Roman period (see also EHER 81914). Notable finds include coins of the early Roman emperors Nero and Vespasian, as well as of Trajan and Hadrian. Other finds include several 'Langton Down' type copper alloy brooches and a 'Colchester' two-piece brooch. <4> Note: This record provides a broad summary of the character of the settlement activity at Elms Farm during the Early Roman period. The excavated evidence is vast and cannot easily be summarised in this record. For a more detailed discussion of the excavated evidence from the 1993 and 1994-1995 excavations please refer to the Open Access monograph <3> and <2>. It should also be noted that it is not possible to confidently ascribe a discrete division between each phase of occupation at this site and, as such, the information described here should be considered alongside the other records for Elms Farm (EHER 17444-17446 and EHER 81912-81917). The remaining is a general description of the site gathered from several sources. The Roman small town/port represented at Elms Farm appears to centre around a temple complex with 1st century metalled roads respecting its precinct which was maintained for much of the Roman period. The major north-south throughfare had three side streets running off at right angles to its east. These define distinct zones of activity within the core of the settlement, with an area of manufacture and pitting occurring to the south. The temple precinct occupying a central position, a possible public open space centred upon a large well to its north, and apparent domestic activities further to the north, west and east. Large expanses of metalled surfaces accompanied the roads; on these were wooden buildings. Demolition rubble in later pits suggests the presence in the first century of a brick-built building, perhaps a mansion. <5> The occurrence of mould fragments and many iron, lead and copper alloy objects indicate metal working alongside pottery production - several kilns were found. The wooden shafts of four roman wells were preserved by the high water table and yielded a wide range of wooden and leather objects and environmental remains. The pottery suggests that the settlement had its heyday in the 1st century BC to 1st century AD; though occupation spans the whole of the Roman period. <6> To the north of the town were field systems, a pottery kiln and a 'T-shaped' structure probably used in the drying of agriculture produce. <7> The Roman small town overlay the Late Iron Age settlement and probably developed directly from it. It was first identified from chance finds made in the 19th and early 20th centuries, but in 1972 the excavation at Crescent Road combined with the collation of the earlier evidence established the presence of a sizeable multi-period settlement. In 1993-1995 rescue excavations took place at Elms Farm and Langford Road in advance of housing development, examining a large proportion of the town (perhaps as much as 50%). The results of all this fieldwork are currently being analysed and prepared for publication, consequently the information in this summary (supplied by M. Atkinson, Elms Farm Project Manager) is only an interim statement and the interpretation of the site may change as analysis proceeds. The division between Late Iron Age and early Roman settlement is rather poorly defined, in fact there may well be none at all. However, the early period of the Roman settlement, and perhaps its inception, is marked by the laying of the metalled roads and then large expanses of gravelled surfaces between them. These overlie features of apparent Late Iron Age date and are themselves used as occupation surfaces, into which the remains of wooden buildings, pits and ditches have been found to cut. There is a main north-south road, presumably heading off north and eventually linking the settlement to Witham and ultimately Colchester, with three side-roads running eastwards off it. It is the roads which provide the framework for the layout of the settlement and divide it into distinct zones of activity: that is a widespread area of pitting along the south of the site, the centrally-placed temple precinct, a possible market place and an area of domestic activity along the northern side of the site. The Roman settlement appears to have had an economic base of an agricultural nature. Part of this agricultural hinterland was excavated in the 1993 Elms Farm excavation. Analysis of the Elms Farm excavations suggests that it was a settlement on the borderline between being a large village and a small town. It appears however to have had a specialist religious function and a broad range of small-scale manufacturing activities. It was not densely occupied by buildings and probably each fairly large plot had only one main structure fronting onto the roads and tracks. The environmental evidence suggests a settlement containing open areas of pasture and indicates the presence of livestock. The presence of artefacts such as steelyard weights indicate the bagging and apportioning of produce into standard weights. The settlement probably had a function as a market centre, perhaps with a fairly small sphere of influence. Livestock and agrarian produce were brought in and sold/redistributed. The town also manufactured items for the use of its inhabitants and its hinterland, including small-scale pottery production and the casting of metallic objects (both domestic and ornamental). Surprisingly, very little evidence for a coastal economy has yet been discerned. While there is some debris from salt manufacture, only half a dozen of the features excavated produced oyster shell. The earlier suggestions that Heybridge was a major port involved in continental trade were not substantiated by the Elms Farm excavations. No structures such as wharves or warehouses have been excavated, nor does the very substantial pottery assemblage contain material indicative of direct trade links. However, both river and estuary must have played their part, and it is possible that evidence of estuarine/maritime activity lies further south and west, beyond the site and toward the river. The decline of the Roman settlement appears to have been gradual. The imported ceramic evidence indicates a period of greatest prosperity in the 1st century AD with a gradual reduction in the scope of imported pottery from the 2nd century onwards. However this may simply reflect changes in the economic base of the settlement and the number of coins and animal bones increase in quantity in the 3rd and 4th centuries AD. However, the evidence from the site morphology suggests that decline can be perhaps be perceived in the encroachment of apparent rubbish pits into the temple precinct in the third and fourth centuries, though these still respect the temple itself. Taking the site as a whole, there are fewer pits dated to the later Roman period. This is probably a real trend and perhaps indicative of a reduced population. Alternatively, this could be a product of a change in the method of rubbish disposal, though the 1993 excavation which focused on an eight hectare area of field systems in the settlement's immediate hinterland did not yield any evidence for disposal of rubbish on the fields. The roads were maintained into the ?mid 3rd century or later, though it is difficult to determine whether they continued beyond this date in a more neglected state as tracks. Buildings were extremely difficult to discern and it is difficult to use pattern and density of structures as an indicator of the fortunes of the settlement or to determine the lifespan of the roads by buildings fronting onto them. However, the 'side' roads clearly go out of use by the late 4th or even early 5th centuries when they were all cut by a substantial set of posts - presumably a major fence line. Elsewhere, there is evidence for buildings encroaching upon, and blocking the roads and tracks, indicating that the layout and functioning of the Roman settlement had broken down by the end of the Roman period. It is thought that the Roman settlement at the head of the Blackwater estuary covered an area of approximately 25 hectares, with the 1994 Elms Farm site encompassing approximately half of the total settlement. The finding of large amounts of material during the extraction of gravel from what is now the pond at Langford Junction in 1888, suggests that occupation was as dense in this area. The excavated evidence suggests that within the settlement area there was a relatively small and dense core of plots and buildings surrounded by more dispersed settlement within strip plots. The temple is thought to have been positioned on the core perimeter. This view is substantiated by the nature of Roads 3 and 4 which immediately become mere tracks to the east of the temple precinct wall. This division between the core and surrounding settlement became fossilised later; by the 4th century it was marked by a very substantial fence line which ran north-south the entire length of the site. Hundreds of intercutting pits, the majority either Late Iron Age/Roman transition or early Roman in date, occurred in a dense band along the south side of the 1994 Elms Farm site, in an area occupied by long thin plots of land, divided by minor ditches which fronted on to the southernmost of the roads. These plots appear to have contained sequences of wooden buildings and the remains of both domestic and manufacturing activity. The pits generally contained a wide variety of material including, pottery, animal bone, slag and hammerscale and, occasionally, fragments of metal-working moulds. Pottery kilns and other hearths or drying structures occurred amongst these pits, attesting to likely 'cottage industry' where the inhabitants of the settlement undertook small-scale manufacturing processes alongside domestic and agricultural activities. The northern and western parts of the Elms Farm site contained features of a domestic nature; structural remains alongside hearths and rubbish pits, which occurred in modest density, were found to occupy enclosures and strip plots along the roadsides. Whilst the road layout remained static for the majority of the settlement's lifespan, considerable change seems to have occurred across the low-lying western areas of the site. It was originally laid out as a gravelled surface immediately after the construction of the roads. This surface was occupied by domestic dwellings (at first by traditional Iron Age style roundhouses) until the 2nd century when substantial dumps of silt material were deposited in an effort to raise the ground surface. This would seem to suggest that the low-lying areas of the site were susceptible to freak or seasonal flooding (a band of underlying brickearth hampers natural drainage). Once built-up, these areas were reoccupied, though their usage probably underwent change. Area B, along the northern periphery of the 1994 site, also yielded evidence of dumping and levelling activity. A wide shallow watercourse was found to run along the foot of the gravel terrace, perhaps forming a boundary to the settlement. This marshy channel was partially reclaimed in the first half of the 2nd century and again in the 3rd when a possible revetment was inserted. Some of these dumps contained significant amounts of brick, tile and opus signinum, suggesting that at least one substantial brick-built structure had been present in the earlier Roman settlement - though the location(s) is unknown. <8> See also other published works and reports <9> - <13>. See newspaper articles <15> - <18>. See aerial photograph <19>. Area = roughly 13ha. Note: There is extensive evidence for Roman occupation in the areas immediately outside of the 1993 and 1994-1995 excavated areas. The presence of a Roman settlement was first suggested in 1888 with the recovery of a large assemblage of Roman artefacts in 1888 at Langford Junction (EHER 7786). Individual finds have also been recovered at Langford Place to the north (EHER 7800) and in the vicinity of Crescent Road (EHER 7810, EHER 7799, EHER 18779 and see also EHER 14774). Crescent Road has also been the focus of several archaeological excavations since 1972 (EHER 81896) and almost all have produced Roman finds and features (see EHER 46151, EHER 46278, EHER 47131 and EHER 48697). A common feature of many of these excavations is the presence of gravel extraction pits which presumably supplied the metalled surfaces described in this record. Roman features were also recorded to the north of the 1993 and 1994-1995 excavation areas, at Langford Road (EHER 14652 and EHER 81895). Lastly, geophysical survey on land to the south-west of the Elms Farm site also detected the probable remains of Late Iron Age linear features, demonstrating the activity described in this record probably continued into this area (EHER 81887 and EHER 81888). Taken together, these records provide further evidence for the extent of the Roman activity at Elms Farm which is described by this record.