Monument record TQ 86 SE 342 - Late Iron Age and Roman pits, ditches, and hollow ways, 111 High Street, Newington

Late Iron Age and Roman pits, ditches, and hollow ways were identifed during an evaluation carried out on land at 111 High Street, Newington. These features have been interpreted (1) as representing part of a peripheral settlement, with hollow ways forming connecting routes between a larger Iron Age and Roman settlement to the north and Watling Street Roman road to the south.

Artefacts recovered from the site comprised pottery including sherds of flagons, jars, and possible beakers, and several fragments of tegula. One pit at the site contained daub and crushed chalk, and several features contained iron panning, and charcoal within their fills. Metal working debris recovered from the site was sampled and analysed. 25% of the sample comprised tapping slag, whilst 75% comprised furnace cakes which solidified in situ in the base of a furnace. This has led to the interpretation (1) that a tapping technique was initially implemented at the site, and which was later phased out to be replaced by shaft-type furnaces during the Roman period. Several fragments of kiln were recovered from a refuse pit excavated at the site. (1)

<1> Swale and Thames Archaeological Survey Company, 2023, Archaeological Evaluation On Land Adjacent At Willow Trees, 111 High Street, Newington, Sittingbourne, Kent (Unpublished document). SKE56526.