Early Anglo-Saxon sunken featured buildings, Barrington's Farm, Orsett Cock (EHER 5223)

Archaeological excavation in 1983 recorded three sunken featured buildings (Grubenhaus), two postholes and one ditch, which produced 4.9kg of Anglo-Saxon pottery. The site is undoubtedly part of a larger settlement, and other excavated material is recorded in EHER 1860 to the west.

1983. Watching brief and archaeological excavations. Cropmarks and other features excavated before the A13 dualling, east of the Orsett 'Cock' enclosure. The excavated features included some cropmarks already recorded (EHER 1856-1862). For aerial photograph references see EHER 1858 and EHER 5218. Six features (three sunken featured buildings, two postholes and one ditch) yielded a total of 4.9kg of Anglo-Saxon pottery; 75% from the fills of the sunken featured buildings. Pottery included finger-rusticated and stamped sherds, most pots were of a simple globular form; all can be dated to the period AD 400-700. The site is undoubtedly part of a larger settlement; one sunken featured building to the south-west was excavated in 1968 by Mr Bingley of Thurrock Museum and a further five were excavated in 1976-1979 by H. Toller of ECC. This makes a total of nine rather widely dispersed buildings and it is possible that more structures survive in the vicinity. <1> <2> <3> Several other cropmarks indicated possible Saxon huts, especially in the area to the south of Barrington's Farm buildings. However, when cleaned up they proved to be silt-filled natural hollows. <2> See aerial photographs <4> <5>. See also <6>. Original HER entry merged with NRHE data transfer.