Further Excavations At Langtoft. Lincolnshire www - Archaeology ...

orientation and alignment (Hutton 2008a, 2008b). Other features included a watering
hole, a small 'horse-shoe' shaped posthole-structure, isolated pits and pit/wells and
structural features in the form of postholes, as well as a gully and pits that were
associated with the previously excavated saltern site.
Artefacts included a large assemblage of pottery, faunal remains including worked
bone, flint artefacts and debitage material, timber revetments and other worked wood.
The majority of the features were attributed to the Middle Bronze Age, with a small
amount of Early Bronze Age occupational evidence and later activity pertaining to the
Middle Iron Age saltern site. The results are dealt with below in chronological order.
Middle Bronze Age
The feature types that were observed in the first phase on the Glebe land (for example
linears, pit/wells and watering holes) were also prevalent in the current phase. The
pottery recovered was predominantly Deverel-Rimbury, although the quantity was
rather less than seen in the previous excavations in the area. Very little material was
recovered from the linear features to the southwest of the area, with only a small
amount recovered from the pit/wells.
Linear Features
The linear features associated with the field system were generally segmented
(particularly towards the southeast of the excavation) and produced little artefactual
evidence. F.1254 was a re-cut of an earlier smaller linear F.1275 that continued the
northwest-southeast orientation previously observed. The northern terminal of F. 1254
was cut by a pit/well (F.1265), which differs from previous examples on Whitfield,
Freeman and the earlier phase of Glebe where the linear had always cut the pit. There
was also slight evidence of an earlier pit (F.1270). Both of these features cut a narrow
gully F.1269 that was on a north-south orientation. This was cut by pit F.1245.
To the east of the area F.1060 from the previous phase continued and terminated in
the current area. An additional two ditches on the same orientation (northwestsoutheast)
F.1253 and F.1060; the latter feature possibly cut F.1253, but appears to
terminate just east of it. Also, to the north of the area, F.1009 continued on a
northeast-southwest orientation from the previous excavation and terminated about
32m inside the current area. These linear features form part of the same field system
that extends from the Whitfield land to the south and Freeman land to the north.
Pit/wells and watering holes
The pit/wells recorded during excavations at Glebe display similar general
characteristics to those previously recorded elsewhere in the quarry environs. There
are however, some slight distinctions in this group. As highlighted in previous
excavations on Whitfield and Freeman, some of the pit/wells had log ladders
abandoned in the bottom of them (Hutton 2007, 2008a). No log ladders were found
during this current phase on Glebe, however here some of the pit/wells had a small
'step' cut into the side, which would have made access to the water relatively easy,
and there would be no need for a ladder. Those pits that did produce log ladders in
the previous investigations had far steeper sides and access would have been difficult
without such an aid.
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