Sutton Common Updated project design - University of Exeter

The alphanumeric grid used for the 1999, 2002 and 2003 excavations at Sutton Common,
superimposed over the outline of the enclosures. North is at the top. Each grid measures
30 x 30 m.
• The 1998 trenches are shown in black
• The 1999 trenches in dark grey
• The 2002 trenches in medium grey and
• The 2003 trenches in light grey.
• The extensions in blue represent the changes made following the publication of the
research framework for the Iron Age (Haselgrove et al. 2001), and were excavated in
2003.
1.2 A summary of the results of the project to date
To all sense and purpose, the large-scale excavations at Sutton Common in 2002 and 2003
were a success, with all set targets achieved. It is important to remember that all archaeological
interventions prior to 1998 combined exposed less than 0.5% of the extent of the site, and
that the much larger scale excavation over the last years have radically altered our
understanding. These results are best described within a chronological framework (see below)
The adoption of a new phasing system is required to distinguish it from previously used and
published phasing systems (e.g. Parker Pearson and Sydes 1997) which have been found to
be in error. Most importantly, but somewhat confusingly, it was previously believed that the
so-called palisade predated the bank-and-ditch arrangements by a considerable period, and
that the larger enclosure at Sutton Common included two distinct phases of activity. We are
now convinced that this was not the case, and that the ‘palisade’ formed an integrated part of
the multivallate system of banks and ditches. However, our excavations did establish a period
of re-use of the Sutton Common enclosures. This comprises a ‘cemetery’ of some 30 small
geometrically shaped enclosures that were used for secondary deposition of cremation remains.
Most of these were found to be badly truncated, but a suggested Late Iron Age or Early
Roman date may be proposed on the basis of the sparse finds.
The excavations of 2003 incorporated the relevant recommendations from the then just
published research framework for the Iron Age (Haselgrove et al. 2001) where possible, and
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