Reasons for Designation
Much of the archaeological landscape of Twyford Down and the surrounding area
is preserved as earthworks or crop-marks and represents a relatively complete
and extensive survival. Evidence for early agriculture is provided by strip
lynchets. They occur widely in southern and south eastern England, and are
prominent features on the Wessex chalkland. Normally they are of medieval
origin and it is unusual, as in this case, to find them directly associated
with evidence of Romano-British settlement. Each lynchet or terrace has two
components, consisting of a scarp or `riser' and flat strip or `tread'. They
are often 200m or more in length, and usually include between two and six
lynchets within a group.
The surviving strip lynchets on the north west spur of Twyford Down are in
excellent condition despite some disturbance by golf course landscaping and
are a rare, early example of their type. Excavation has indicated that they
retain archaeological remains and environmental evidence relating to their use
and the landscape in which they were constructed.
Details
The monument includes a group of four substantial strip lynchets of late Iron
Age or early Romano-British date, and several slight lynchets, probably of
Early Iron Age date. It occupies a prominent position on the Hockley Golf
Course at the south western end of a spur extending from Twyford Down. It is
the remnant of a previously more extensive system of lynchets and settlement
remains which, prior to the construction of the M3 and Winchester Bypass,
covered all sides of the spur to the north, west and south. Several short
sections of lynchet and an associated trackway also survive immediately north
of the M3 but these have been disturbed by recent tree-planting and are not
included in the scheduling.
The strip lynchets extend for approximately 450m in an east-west direction
along the south flank of the spur and turn sharply to the north at the west
end, where they are cut by the M3. However, the field system, where it runs
under the earthen bund, created to mitigate views of the motorway, is included
in the scheduling. The lynchets comprise linear scarps, standing 2m-3.5m high,
which divide the slope into a series of comparatively level strip fields or
platforms, about 50m wide. A trackway extends around the base of one of the
lynchets and they are crossed by a north-south hollow way at the east end. The
smaller lynchets are restricted to the upper slopes of the spur and consist of
low scarps extending from the north boundary of the golf course.
Excavations in 1933 and 1991 in the M3 corridor and the field just to the
south revealed evidence of Early Iron Age and Late Iron Age/Early Romano-
British settlement associated with the lynchets and suggested a development
from the use of small rectangular Celtic fields to Romano-British strip
fields. Pits and other earthworks associated with settlement previously
recorded in the field between the golf course and the M3 have now been
levelled and are not included in the scheduling.
All posts, fencing, signs, ball-cleaners, seats and other golf course
furniture are excluded from the scheduling, as is the earthen bund, although
the ground beneath these features is included.
MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
