| Popis: |
This report details the findings of a permanent-presence archaeological watching brief which took place during construction of the c. 3.7km long Transco Sharpness to Lydney Gas Pipeline in Gloucestershire. The pipeline runs north west from an undesignated minor road near Sharpness, beneath the River Severn, to the A48 north east of Lydney. The route passes through arable fields on both sides of the River Severn. The section of pipeline crossing the river was installed by horizontal directional drilling below the riverbed. Apart from plough marks, which were observed in eight of the plots on the west side of the Severn, a post medieval or modern ditch in Plot 4 was the only cut feature encountered during the investigations. Fifteen field boundaries were identified and surviving earthworks were recorded opportunistically. A hundred and twenty finds, including pottery, glass, flint, ceramic building material, slag, stone and metal, were also collected. Three struck flints were the only prehistoric material recovered during the watching brief. All came from the area around Gurshill Farm, at the western end of the route. Unstratified potsherds were found in eleven of the fifteen plots crossed by the pipeline. Ten pieces of Roman pottery were found, eight of which came from three plots near the eastern end of the pipeline. Fifty sherds of medieval pottery were recovered. These suggested two areas of possible medieval activity, one at the extreme eastern end of the route, the other near the western end, beside the road running north from Gurshill Farm. Four plots produced slag that has been identified as medieval or earlier in date. Over 5kg of this material was found in Plot 4 and may indicate the presence of a bloomery in the vicinity. |
