Digital Data from an Archaeological Evaluation at Burford Grange, Bedford Road, Ickleford, Hertfordshire 2022

This collection comprises images and GIS data from an archaeological evaluation carried out by Cotswold Archaeology on land at Burford Grange, Bedford Road, Ickleford, Hertfordshire. The work took place in July 2022 as part of a planning requirement.
A total of 20 out of the originally planned 21 trenches were excavated across the 2.7ha proposed development site but one trench could not be excavated due to site constraints.
The evaluation identified a large number of furrows, all aligned north-west/south-east, associated with medieval and/ or early postmedieval ridge and furrow cultivation. Several likely drainage ditches were also encountered during the evaluation, cut through the subsoil and matching the alignments of the furrows, with one ditch producing a single fragment of 18th to 20th century pottery and a fragment of ceramic building material.
Two other undated ditches, in Trenches 5 and 6, were aligned differently to the other features and appeared to be covered by the subsoil, possibly hinting at the presence of a separate field system predating the medieval/post-medieval ridge and furrow system. A single undated pit identified in Trench 21 is potentially the only feature on the Site not directly connected with agricultural activity. The date and function of the pit, which contained charcoal and burnt stones, remains unclear, with no finds or environmental evidence recovered.
Overall, the results of the evaluation suggest that the Site has formed part of a wider agricultural landscape since at least the medieval period and possibly beyond, with no evidence for domestic or other activity of any type or period.