Berwick upon Tweed: Distribution and Significance of Urban Waterlogged Deposits
Author(s): Karen Derham
Northumberland Conservation (Northumberland County Council) undertook a project funded by English Heritage (now Historic England) to assess at the distribution and significance of urban waterlogged deposits in Berwick upon Tweed. The projects aimed to provide a better understanding of the location and significance of the waterlogged assets to support decision-makers working in the planning system. Existing information from geotechnical and archaeological investigations was gathered into a database in order to produce a GIS-based 3D deposit model of the below ground deposits in the town. This information was used to identify the presence, nature and survival of waterlogged layers and organic remains in relation to medieval and post-medieval layers, underlying natural deposits and later development and disturbance. The results demonstrate that waterlogged deposits are largely confined to medieval rubbish pits cut into the underlying natural clay and to areas of lower ground next to the Tweed estuary. The results of the project provide a more detailed understanding of the development of the urban structure of Berwick and the factors that influence the waterlogging of deposits within the town. The deposit model will continue to develop as the results of future archaeological investigations are fed into the existing data. Northumberland Conservation (Northumberland County Council) undertook a project funded by English Heritage (now Historic England) to assess at the distribution and significance of urban waterlogged deposits in Berwick upon Tweed. The projects aimed to provide a better understanding of the location and significance of the waterlogged assets to support decision-makers working in the planning system. Existing information from geotechnical and archaeological investigations was gathered into a database in order to produce a GIS-based 3D deposit model of the below ground deposits in the town. This information was used to identify the presence, nature and survival of waterlogged layers and organic remains in relation to medieval and post-medieval layers, underlying natural deposits and later development and disturbance. The results demonstrate that waterlogged deposits are largely confined to medieval rubbish pits cut into the underlying natural clay and to areas of lower ground next to the Tweed estuary. The results of the project provide a more detailed understanding of the development of the urban structure of Berwick and the factors that influence the waterlogging of deposits within the town. The deposit model will continue to develop as the results of future archaeological investigations are fed into the existing data.
- Report Number:
- 83/2013
- Series:
- Other
- Pages:
- 71
