Reasons for Designation
A distinctive group of square ditched enclosures between 0.25ha and 1ha in
area has been recorded in north and west Norfolk. All are situated on
relatively high ground and, most, if not all, have a single entrance. Their
distribution is similar to that of the Iron Age forts in the county and those
which have been investigated have produced evidence for a date in the Late
Iron Age (2nd century BC - 1st century AD). Although the limited excavations
on sites of this type have not, as yet, provided conclusive evidence for their
function, it is thought that they probably had a religious or ceremonial
purpose, since excavated examples of a class of similar later Iron Age
enclosures in central and western Europe and in Southern England have been
found to contain ritual structures or to have been used for burials.
The ditched enclosure 270m north east of Warham Camp is of particular interest
because of its close association with the nearby Iron Age fort. The buried
ditches and features in the subsoil of the interior will retain archaeological
information relating to its construction and use to add to the evidence
recovered by the limited excavations on the site and to increase understanding
of this particular group of monuments.
Details
The monument includes the buried remains of a rectangular ditched enclosure
located on the northern end of a spur of glaciated chalk above the valley of
the River Stiffkey which runs 280m to the west. It lies 270m north east of the
circular Iron Age earthwork enclosure known as Warham Camp, which is the
subject of a separate scheduling.
The enclosure, which has internal dimensions of approximately 70m north-south
by 67m east-west, with an entrance on the east side, is defined by a ditch
which has become completely infilled, although it survives as a buried feature
beneath the ploughsoil and forms a cropmark (these are areas of differential
crop growth over buried archaeological deposits), which has been recorded on
aerial photographs.
A description published in 1810 refers to entrenchments on the site, known as
The Buroughs, showing that it was then at least partly visible.
Limited excavations carried out in 1959 have demonstrated that the ditch is
`V' shaped in section and between 1.7m and 2m deep measured from the present
surface of the ploughsoil. On the west and north sides of the enclosure and
around the north east corner it is approximately 2m wide, and on the south
side and the east side south of the entrance it is approximately 5.8m wide.
According to the evidence recorded in excavation, the wider part of the ditch
is the result of a recutting, never completed, after the original ditch had
become partly infilled. The enclosure is dated to some time between the end
of the 3rd century BC and the mid-1st century AD by fragments of Late Iron Age
and Romano-British pottery recovered during the excavation.
MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 10 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.
