Untitled - Council for British Archaeology

The recording of the settlement features as they are exposed
during the building operations continues to be undertaken chiefly by
Peter Biebrach assisted by local volunteers to whom the OAU Would
again like to extend its thanks.
23. TICESTER; Lower Home Close
Ground-work for a small housing estate in the centre of Biaester,
occupying a field that extends between 90 - 230 m north of the parish
church has exposed extensive médieval,occupation. The site.was first
reported to the Unit by Humphrey Woods (PRN 11, 876; Centred
SP.58312242).
The mechanical removal of 0.15 -.0.3 m of top eoil.exposed
limestone rubble spreads from yard and floor surfaces and debris from
drystone. Or soil bonded building foundations (Pig.116:.). This rubble
covered almost all of the site.except for a elightly depressed.area
along the eastern edge of the site which is shown 'shaded on the plan'
(Fig. 11160; This area which beaomes boggy in wet weather was.sectioned
by a deep trench which exposed the edge of a-channel for the River
Bure. A close watch of the house foundations, service trenches and
the roadway cutting.revealedjip to 0.3 mnf stratified archaeological.
deposits remaining'beneath the topsoil strip with post.holee, pits.
and property boundary ditches occasionally seen in section.
All of the dateable-features recorded on this site were medieval.
The amount of post7medieval pottery recovered was almost as small as
the quantity of residual.Romano-Britishpattery. This lack of
material indicated that in both periods although there must have
been occupation close by there need not'have been any occupation on
thé site itsel. Several sherds of early Anglo-Saxon ''grass-tempered"
fabrics and several coarse,. indistinguishable. Angla-Saxon or Iron
Agesherds were also recavered froM the site.
Away from the deep silt§ of theald river channel the variable
eubsoil comprised light noloured clays, sometime§ sandy, in betireen.
'non-uniforM beds and lenses of liMestane of varying.quality. Ak_bed
of better quality limestone occurred'at.the 'northern end of the site
and this had been heavily quarried although possibly by'the:middle
..and certainly by the later medieval period the quarries-had all been
back-filled and built aver..
Bicester developed from'two separate manors, King's End and
Market End, which always shared the parish ahurch of St. Edburga.
However, although a.small amount'of village settlement was suspected
to have grown up around the church before the development of the
market place and expansion of the town along Sheep Street, it is clear
from this site that there was a fairly large agricultural village
elementsurviving bythe-church on the western side-of the River Bure
until the beginning of the post-medieval period. Just how large this
element was remains unclear. The future development of land adjoining
this site may proVide opportunities to-explore the extent and date
range of this occupation.
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