Designed by Jon Matthews Copyright John Matthews 2010
Winscombe Archaeology
A second route runs from east to west along the valley below Sandford Hill and Banwell Wood. The line of the road runs just north of Ilex Lane and continues west, north of the field boundary which runs alongside the present footpath.
An agger is evident as an earthwork continuing through several fields towards the Banwell Road (A371), and a geophysics survey has shown a substantial ditch (2.5m wide) along its south side.
A 400m length of the line of the Roman road under Banwell Wood looking north. The ditch to the left runs along the south side of the agger (seen in the photograph above). A modern water main is just visible a few meters below it. The field in the centre shows a number of modern drainage ditches (gripes).
The rubble foundation along the course of the Roman road looking east. There is little obvious differentiation between the natural deposits and the agger below this foundation.
A resitivity survey shows the agger as an area of much higher resistance with sharply defined edges. Excavation has identified a ditch to the north of the agger, the location of the south ditch was not determined
A resitivity survey shows the agger as an area of much higher resistance with sharply defined edges. Excavation has identified a ditch to the north of the agger, the location of the south ditch was not determined
Recent excavations for a water pipe have cut across the line of this road exposing some of the rubble foundation at ST40855860. The road continues west to cross the A371 below Banwell Nursery and appears to join the Lane north of Rhodyate Farm. Geophysics in this area has not been able to determine the position of the road, although in one field parallel ditches along the probable course were evident.
There is the possibility of the existence of another road that would appear to cross (or join) the above road. Geophysics has identified parallel ditches about 16m apart; there is a compacted gravel surface between these ditches, but this may be a natural deposit.
The line of the road (if that is what it proves to be) would take it approximately north east towards the track across the top of Sandford Hill where a Romano-British settlement was claimed to have existed on Small Down (known as ‘Smaldon’ in Collinson’s The history and antiquities of the County of Somerset, 1791).
No other evidence for the existence of this road has yet been established.
The line of the road (if that is what it proves to be) would take it approximately north east towards the track across the top of Sandford Hill where a Romano-British settlement was claimed to have existed on Small Down (known as ‘Smaldon’ in Collinson’s The history and antiquities of the County of Somerset, 1791).
No other evidence for the existence of this road has yet been established.
A length of presumed road with ditches either side about 16m apart. The area covered is 120m by 60m looking north. The line cutting diagonally through the ditches is a modern water pipe.
Great Seven Acres, Broadleaze Farm
A resistivity survey of part of the agger of the Roman road that runs across Great Seven Acres, Broadleaze Farm, at ST 412 586. A very large ditch can be seen south and parallel to the line of the road. A modern water main is visible to the west, south of the ditch and a gas pipline running north/south to the east of the area. The darker
shaded area has been processed as a surface resistance chart (Above - MISSING).
shaded area has been processed as a surface resistance chart (Above - MISSING).
A ground resistance chart of part of the area surveyed in Great Seven Acres. The chart is viewed from the east and covers an area 20m by 40m. The agger can be seen clearly and also the large ditch beside it. The ditch has a width of about 3m, but its depth and precise shape of the cut cannot be verified using this process.
MISSING PIC
Route 2