Undated cremation and pits, land east of Halstead Road (EHER 81681)

Archaeological evaluation revealed undated activity comprising three undated pits and an unurned undated cremation in the western part of the site.

Evaluation, 2017 Archaeological evaluation revealed undated activity comprised three undated pits and an unurned cremation in the western part of the site. The cremation burial in Trench 22 appeared (from the limited investigation undertaken) to be deposited straight into the burial pit without being placed in a burial urn. No associated artefacts were recovered from very limited surface cleaning of the feature and it remains undated. Three undated pits with charcoal-rich fills (903, 1706 and 7903) were identified during the excavation, however none were dated. The pits shared no common features other than the presence of charcoal within their fills and none of them contained evidence of in situ heating activity. The pits were probably associated with small scale, localised deposition of burnt material and may not directly relate to domestic or industrial activity. The environmental sample from pit 7903 contained free-threshing wheat grains indicative of Saxon or medieval date, together with a small quantity of material possibly indicative of metalworking activity in the vicinity. <1>