| Description | During the summer of 1977, the County Archaeology Unit for West Yorkshire undertook a rescue excavation of a square, ditched enclosure with an east facing entrance at Rothwell Haigh Colliery. Unfortunately the exact location of the enclosure can no longer be identified, but was situated somewhere in the vicinity of SE 352 295. The enclosure was first identified during aerial reconnaissance in July 1977; following stripping by the National Coal Board prior to tipping, archaeologists were afforded an opportunity to examine the crop mark features exposed.
Excavations revealed a square (c.52m by 52m), ditched enclosure with an east facing entrance. While the ditch survived as a shallow feature due to the recent stripping of topsoil, subsoil and bedrock, the terminals survived to depths of c.1.5m and widths of c.3m. There is no record of any finds being recovered from the enclosure ditch. The ditch terminal were joined by a narrow gully, which in association with three possible post holes externally and a centrally placed pit or post hole just inside the entrance, may have formed part of a gateway structure. Within the enclosure, a sub rectangular pit and two further gullies were observed. Again artefacts were scare from the discrete features, save Pit 25, from which a complete beehive base was recovered.
A well was located within the enclosure and was fully excavated. Measuring 12.3m in depth and c.2m in width, the well cut through bedrock (much like the example at Dalton Parlours only 10 mile to the north east see PRN 1972) with no evidence for timber or wattle lining. Pottery from the well, which was waterlogged from c.7m, indicates rapid infilling from the late 3rd century at the earliest, through to the early/mid 4th century. Waterlogged wooden objects include a bucket, spade and bowls, while the disposal of complete pots (form relating to food preparation and consumption rather than water bearing), a quern disk roughout, articulated animal parts and a human skull highlight the potential for symbolic deposition. In contrast, finds including leather objects (predominately shoes), butchery waste, and wooden offcuts suggest a more prosaic explanation for some of the well’s backfill (ASWYAS, 2011: p.4).
For further details regarding the 1977 fieldwork please see the final excavation report, which was compiled and published in January 2011 by Archaeological Services WYAS (a copy of which is on file at West Yorkshire HER).
The findings from the excavation of the well were written up by H E M Cool and J E Richardson and published in the journal Britannia in late 2013 (Volume 44, November 2013: 191 217) A copy of the paper is on file in the HER. |