The test pit is close to a Bartlemas Farmhouse dated partly to the early 16th century, but an older part to the east may have been the warden’s house for the Bartlemas leper hospital founded in the 12th century. This area was clearly occupied during the medieval period as pottery from the pit demonstrates. There is also clear evidence from the make-up layer of clay and domestic/animal waste that the ground level was raised at some point, probably to prevent flooding.

Test pit 13 was located on the western edge of the Rose Hill allotments in an area sloping to the west and the river. Historic Ordnance Survey maps show this area as agricultural land until the development of Abberbury Road. This particular area of the allotments was, however, also part of the Glebe field, the remnant of which survives to the west.

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Test Pit 31 is the second of a number of planned test pits to be dug in allotments that border the south and east of Bartlemas Chapel. The aim of these small excavations is to see if it is possible to determine the extent of activity around the chapel prior to the boundary wall being constructed.

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See photographs on Flickr     

Click here to read project volunteer and artist Nick Hedges observations on Bartlemas Chapel.

3 November

Well, that’s me finished; I’ve got things to do so I’m having to miss out on the last two days of the dig – let’s hope someone will pick up where I leave off.

 A test pit was dug in the lawn of a garden in Long Lane, Littlemore.  A large number of finds were recovered, including modern to possiby Roman pottery.

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A test pit was dug to a depth of 1.0m. The natural geology was reached at 0.32m (72.65m above OD). On removing the turf, a thin, uneven spread of pea gravel could be seen immediately below the turfline, mixed with the soil from Spit 1

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The test pit was positioned inside and east of the western boundary ditch, in such a way as to avoid an area that the householder identified as previously having been a rose bed. The test pit was dug to a depth of 0.38m. The natural geology was not reached

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A test pit was dug in the front garden of Bartlemas Farmhouse to explore the character of the soils in this part of the site,and to test the survival of any archaeology and the depth of recently accumulated soils.

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 The site of the test pit was the Manor House in Littlemore, Oxford.  The building was constructed in 1530 and would have been at the heart of the western centre of the bifocal settlement of Littlemore. 

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The majority of the pottery recovered from the excavation appeared to be post medieval in nature although there were one or two pieces which may have been medieval in origin, possibly Brill Ware.  Click here to read the full report.