Roman inhumation burial and pit, Mill House, Newmarket Road, Great Chesterford (EHER 83311)

A watching brief recorded a pit containing oyster shell, bones and pottery sherds, and the partial remains of a female skeleton.

1986. Watching brief. A watching brief during the building of an extension on the north side of Mill House revealed a Roman pit in the north-east corner. This contained oyster shell, bones and pottery sherds. The mechanical excavator also revealed a skeleton orientated approximately south-west–north-east in the outer angle of the foundation trench. The grave comprised a shallow depression surrounded by large stones, and cut the natural (gravelly marl). The body was lying on its back with its hands folded on its lap, its lower limbs were inaccessible within the section. Part of the skull was missing, probably as a result of the manner of discovery, and all of the spine, ribs and scapulae; the excavator thought that these had been removed in the past, possibly by the cutting of a pit through the chest area. A number of sherds of Roman pottery were found among the bones. The skeleton is thought to be a female, 25–30 years old. <1> Note: Coffin burials of the same date have also been recorded in the vicinity of Mill House, see EHER 16398.