900m section of the north Oxfordshire Grim's Ditch 200m north of Grim's Dyke Farm, running north into Hark Wood

Reasons for Designation

The north Oxfordshire Grim's Ditch is a series of discrete linear earthworks of Iron Age date which together make up at least one segmented circuit, situated between the valleys of the Rivers Evenlode, Glyme and Windrush in an area of the eastern Cotswolds. In recent years evidence for an outer concentric circuit has come to light, largely from the study of cropmarks visible on aerial photographs. The area enclosed by the inner circuit is 12 sq km and the outer circuit encloses between 60 and 70 sq km. The earthworks which define this area were only built in open country leaving apparent gaps in the areas previously forested. Where visible, the Grim's Ditch always includes a rampart of dumped earth and stone, a berm and outer ditch and, in places, a narrow palisade trench beyond. It is believed that, together, these components served to enclose and divide an area of land and provide control over access through the open country which existed between heavily forested areas. The ditch is Iron Age in date and provides evidence of how the landscape was managed and divided in the period immediately prior to the Roman Conquest. The high concentration of sites representing Iron Age ritual and agricultural activity which occur within the area defined by the ditch confirms the view that it served to define an area which was of particular significance to its builders. All sections surviving as visible earthworks, and sections identified by aerial photography which are integral to a general understanding of the nature and extent of Grim's Ditch, will normally merit statutory protection.

This section of Grim's Ditch will contain archaeological and environmental evidence relating to its construction and the landscape in which it was built.

Details

The monument includes a 900m long section of the north Oxfordshire Grim's Ditch running from a point 200m north of Grim's Dyke Farm north into Hark Wood. The ditch crosses a narrow valley known as Slape Bottom where a stream passes through a narrow gap in the bank. This section of Grim's Ditch has a bank, berm, ditch and palisade trench. The rampart bank is built of earth and stone and measures c.8m wide and stands up to 1.5m high. Beyond this, to the east, lies a 1.5m wide berm and a 6.5m wide ditch, open in places to a depth of 0.7m. This ditch has become infilled over the years and is used as a track where it runs north of Slape Bottom. Originally it would have been open to a depth of c.1.5m. It is known from excavations on other sections that a palisade trench 0.5m wide and 0.2m deep lies c.3.5m east of the outer ditch edge. This will survive buried below the modern ground level. Excluded from the scheduling are all post and wire fences which cross the monument, the foot bridge and the surface of the track near the northern end of the section, although the ground beneath all of the above is included in the scheduling.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract. It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features, considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

21851

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Harden, D B, Oxoniensia in Excavations On The North Oxfordshire Grim's Ditch 1935-6, (1939), 76-

Other
Title: Ordnance Survey 1:10000 Series Source Date: 1981 Author: Publisher: Surveyor: SP 42 SW
Title: Ordnance Survey 1:10000 Series Source Date: 1981 Author: Publisher: Surveyor: SP 41 NW

End of official list entry

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