Peter wrote:
>This suggests it was cleared away in the early fourteenth century<
This is of course what we are finding in Combe Martin - the repeated
clearing away of earlier industrial activity downslope.
In context terms we have already identified the clearance of 13th/14th
century materials (13th/14th century Exmoor derived medieval coarseware
pottery), 16th/17th century materials (16th/17th century Barnstaple and
Bideford medieval and post medieval coarseware pottery), 17th century
materials (Barnstaple trailed slip and sgraffito wares), 18th/19th century
materials (including Barnstaple, Bristol and South Somerset wares).
There have also been those quite unexpected pottery finds - Cadiz olive jar
wares, Seville cuedaseca ware, saintonge wares.
Amongst the 13th/14th century cleared materials occasional sherds of Bronze
Age (2), Roman black burnished ware (3), late Saxon (11), have been
discovered, and whilst this in no way suggests industrial activity during
these periods, it does suggest a presence.
The pottery assemblage from this site now consists of over 3,000 items and
as the excavation continues, and the assemblage grows, we will have a unique
opportunity of identifying the period use of the site, something which it is
doubtful you will afforded at Calstock.
The Combe Martin site, after 3 years of excavation, has shown already the
complexity of industrial activity carried on there, and how differing
industrial activity continued between relatively short periods of mining.
Trevor
http://www.cmsmrps.org.uk - a community archaeology initiative
----- Original Message -----
From: "Peter Claughton" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, February 04, 2008 8:37 AM
Subject: Re: Romans in Calstock, Cornwall.
> At 21:36 03/02/2008, Trevor Dunkerley wrote:
>>So, early excavation results in Calstock suggest a serious Roman presence.
>>See:
>>
>>http://tinyurl.com/37ekn8
>>
>>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/cornwall/7217173.stm
>
> Trevor,
>
> We have to be careful about attributing the first century Roman military
> presence in the Tamar Valley to the exploitation of metal deposits. The
> discovery resulted from our investigation of the smelting sites associated
> with silver mining in the early fourteenth century but we have no
> evidence, as yet, for any working of those lead-silver deposits (at Bere
> Ferrers) in the Roman period. In positioning our trial trench across the
> earthworks of the fort we included a strong magnetic anomaly which
> suggested a smelting hearth. We identified and excavated the hearth but
> there is no slag associated with it. This suggests it was cleared away in
> the early fourteenth century, as documented, but Samian ware turned up in
> what could be the remains of the hearth, cast downslope during clearance.
> We must wait for the results of radiocarbon dating and analyses of the
> hearth material before we can come to any conclusions as to whether it is
> medieval or Roman.
>
> Peter
>
>
> ______________________________________________
>
> Dr Peter Claughton,
> Blaenpant Morfil, nr. Rosebush, Clynderwen, Pembrokeshire, Wales SA66
> 7RE.
> Tel. +44 (0)1437 532578; Fax. +44 (0)1437 532921; Mobile +44 (0)7831
> 427599
>
> Research Fellow - School of Geography, Archaeology and Earth Resources
>
> Hon. University Fellow - School of Humanities and Social Sciences
>
> Office address - Department of Archaeology, University of Exeter, Laver
> Building, North Park Road, EXETER, EX4 4QE Tel. +44 (0) 1392 263709
>
> E-mail: [log in to unmask]
>
> Co-owner - mining-history e-mail discussion list.
> See http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/files/mining-history/ for details.
>
> Mining History Pages - http://www.people.exeter.ac.uk/pfclaugh/mhinf/
>
> _____________________________________________
>
>
|