| More finds of a certain type at Northfield |
| As we finish our second field the finds keep coming. Yet more burnt flint, and a piece of Roman?? black pottery with flint temper. A rim in a black fabric also looks very Roman. Then there are the post medieval pottery finds, including lots of glazed red earthen ware rims and handles. Considering the size of the field we have found relatively few pieces of clay tobacco pipe. So far, with about two thirds of the finds processed, we have accumulated over 25 kg of material - it must be some sort of record. | |  |
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| The finds keep coming but are much more "normal". |
| 3/3/2026 |
| Nearly two thirds of the way across field 2 and the finds are more like we find on many fields. Lots of post med pot of different sorts - like the large stoneware base, the blue edged pot and lots of glazed red earthenwares. However, there are still pieces that look Roman - like the small piece of flint tempered pot, the very rough orange piece and the grey ware (all very battered). The burnt flints still appear but we have more struck flint - is that because people are becoming more attuned to what they look like? Finally the small number of oyster shells continue to be found over the whole site. The number of bags of finds is definitely becoming smaller in number as we move further from the hotspot. | |  |
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| More from field 2 |
| 25/2/2026 |
| As we move further into field 2 the finds start to resemble our "normal" selection. As the photograph shows we have a good mixture. Burnt flint continues and a few struck flints like the broken tip of a blade. The big burnished black dog bowl rim shows the Romans are still around. Then we move into familiar territory with the glazed red earthen wares and a variety of post med, like the Staffs slipware, the blue & white transfer ware. Finally the creamware and the yellow/blue wall. | |  |
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| First results from Field 2 |
| 10/2/2026 |
| After completing Field 1 we moved onto its neighbour. This did not provide as many finds but did include more Roman pot, as shown in the photograph. Most obvious is the piece of flue tile, less obvious the two small fragments of Samian. There was more Post med stuff in the guise of a colourful transfer print base and the small piece of slipware. A nice worked flint was also found. The colour coat piece was very abraded and red sandy wares completed the finds in the photo. Even more burnt flints were found, this site has produced more than we usually find. | |  |
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| Further processing of BOT001 |
| 9/2/2026 |
| Last Sunday we finished walking the first field and recovered more Roman finds, as the photograph shows. The most obvious one is the large Roman brick (or is it a floor tile??). Also a nice piece of mortaria, a piece that looks like part of a small tegula. There is a small redware piece with circular decorations and a black piece with parallel scored lines that may be Horningsea ware. There were modern pieces like the top right flowerpot with partial legend and the creamware rim. We then moved on to the second neighbouring field where we will see if the Roman spread continues. | |  |
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| Rained off but still finds to sort |
| 2/2/23026 |
| Heavy rain on top of saturated ground meant that we did not go field walking on Sunday, however we still have pottery to sort. Looking through our bumper finds from the week before revealed a lot of black wares, as the photo shows. Most are rough sandy wares but there are also some grey/black wares which are highly burnished. This number of black wares is unusual for us to find in the field, mostly outnumbered by the red wares. Also, recently we have commented on the small size of field finds that we get but in this case there are some substantial pieces. | |  |
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In addition to the black wares, the usual Roman finds can be seen. The photograph shows a selection. Colour coat and shell tempered ware, plus a mortaria rim and a possible Samian platter of 18cm diameter. The fabric of the latter looks slightly suspicious and could be a British copy. Finally the redware rims have a braided decoration just below the rim.
Notwithstanding the preponderance of Roman pottery we still find plenty of Glazed redwares of more recent times. | |  |
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| A record breaking day in Bottisham parish |
| 25/1/2026 |
| Our efforts at Northfield Farm were looking very poor until this Sunday. Not only did we have a record number of walkers (16) but we recovered a record number of finds bags (157). There was a massive amount of surface finds of the Roman period, as the photographs show. The first one shows the main pottery stuff - a flue tile, a tegula tile, a Roman brick plus there were lots of burnt flint and an unusual whelk shell. Post med pot was around as the marmalade jar and the glazed red earthenware rim prove. | |  |
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| The Roman pottery was of all sorts, as the photograph shows. Horningsea large vessels, a small Samian bowl/cup base, colour coated rim possibly a mortaria, a definite mortaria with black iron slag grits, shell tempered ware rim and lots of greyware and redwares. There is so much that it will probably takes us a few weeks to sort and wash. Meanwhile we return again on Sunday and who knows what other delights await us. | |  |
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