Anglo-Saxon sunken featured building (grubenhaus), 9 London Road, Great Chesterford (EHER 83411)

An excavation in 2015 recorded a sunken featured building, possibly a 'six-post derivative' type.

November 2015. Archaeological excavation. A single coherent and inter-related group of features was identified as representing the Anglo-Saxon period on the basis of their stratigraphic relationship with the Roman bounadry ditch. A sunken featured building was constructed over the top of a Roman ditch, cutting the earlier feature. It was sub square in plan (3.30 x 3.10 x 0.33m) with vertical sides and a flate base. Six structural postholes were recorded in association with this structure. If all the original post holes were present, it may be that this structure is a 'six-post derivative' type, otherwise the arrangement of the post holes in this structure may be the result of structural modification, repair and/or replacement. The SFB contained a single fill. It is interesting to note that despite the typological identification of this structure as Anglo-Saxon in origin, the dateable artefactual assemblage indicates a late Romano-British date. It may represent an early post-Roman incoming community occupying, and possibly sharing, the same settlement as the local 'Romanised' population. <1>