Reasons for Designation
Five types of town are known to have existed in Roman Britain: coloniae,
municipia, civitas capitals, Roman provincial capitals and Roman small towns.
The first four types can be classified as `public towns' because each had an
official status within the provincial administrative system.
Roman small towns are settlements of urban character which lack the
administrative status of public towns, but which are nevertheless recognisably
urban in terms of morphology, features and function. They tend to lack the
planned rectangular street grids, public buildings and well-appointed town
houses of the public towns and instead are generally characterised by mainly
insubstantial timber or half-timbered structures. Some small towns possess an
enclosing wall, while others have masonry or earthwork defences. Additional
features include temples, bath houses, ovens, kilns and cemeteries.
Roman small towns began to emerge in the mid-first century AD. However, the
majority of examples appeared in the later first and second centuries, while
the third and fourth centuries saw the growth and development of existing
establishments, together with the emergence of a small number of new ones.
Some small towns had their origins in earlier military sites such as fort-vici
and developed into independent urban areas following the abandonment of the
forts. Others developed alongside major roads and were able to exploit a wide
range of commercial opportunities as a result of their location. There are a
total of 133 Roman small towns recorded in England. These are mainly
concentrated in the Midlands and central southern England. Some examples have
survived as undeveloped `greenfield' sites and consequently possess
particularly well-preserved archaeological remains.
Details
The Roman small town at Wickwar comprises an area of approximately 16
hectares and lies 2km to the south west of Wickwar village. The site is
situated on a slight crest which drops away at the northern end of the site
towards the Ladden Brook.
The town has been identified through extensive geophysical survey and a
number of small trial excavations undertaken by Avon Archaeological Unit
between 2001-2004. It is believed to date from the 2nd to 4th centuries AD.
The remains are concentrated along a length of Roman road which runs across
the site on a north-south axis through the fields Little and Great
Blacklands. Although there is no evidence of a continuation of the metalled
Roman road immediately across the Ladden Brook, it is known to exist from
aerial photography further to the north of the site.
Geophysical survey results clearly show that the central area of the town
comprises a considerable number of stone buildings fronting the road, likely
to be of both domestic and commercial function. Beyond these buildings there
is evidence of a number of dispersed small enclosures, particularly in the
western part of the site. Trial excavations in the north eastern part of the
site have demonstrated the presence of shallow and well-preserved
archaeological deposits including the remains of timber structures, a series
of small lanes and ditches running at right angles to the central road, and
evidence of industrial activity; substantial amounts of iron working debris
were also recovered suggesting the presence of a smithy or iron furnace.
Numerous contemporary small finds have been reported from this area including
metal objects, pottery and dressed stone. Geophysical survey also revealed
the presence of a curved feature in the north eastern part of the site which
may represent a corner of the defensive ditch of a Roman fort. It is of the
characteristic `playing card' shape associated with such features and it is
certainly common for a town to be founded on the site of an earlier fort.
All post and wire fences, gates and gateposts and animal troughs are excluded
from the scheduling. The ground beneath all these features is, however,
included.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
36042
Legacy System:
RSM
End of official list entry
