Monument record TQ 77 NW 156 - Probable saltern identified by aerial photographs

The earthwork remains of an oval mound measuring c.15m x 20m was seen at TQ 7469 7866. This is possibly an example of a 19th century or earlier stock refuge mound constructed on low-lying pasture within the marshlands of the Hoo Peninsula and the margins of the Thames Estuary. These mounds have been referred to and identified in contemporary writings (Spurrell, 1885).
It is possible that the mound has medieval origins, possibly a remnant of a medieval saltern mound, many of which were subsequently utilised as sheepfolds, sheep washes and stock refuges in the post medieval period because of their slightly elevated position in the readily flooded marshes.

Saltern mounds are the result of large-scale salt manufacturing where brine was extracted from salt-rich sands and sediments, concentrated and evaporated using process known as sleeching. The discarded waste material from the process built up around the production area into a sizeable mound, often with a hollow in the centred where a hut stood. These medieval saltern mounds are typically described as `floriate' in form because of their irregular lobed formation of dumped waste. They often occur in clusters around former and surviving tidal water-courses within the marsh. There has been considerable reclamation and subsequent sea wall construction since the medieval period which has isolated these sites from the sea.

This site was mapped from Environment Agency lidar imagery as part of the English Heritage: Hoo Peninsula Landscape Project. (1-5)

<1> Historic England, 2012, National Mapping Programme survey: Hoo Peninsula (Digital archive). SKE32442.

<2> English Heritage, 2013, Hoo Peninsula, Kent. Hoo Peninsula Historic Landscape Project (Bibliographic reference). SKE31432.

<3> Environment Agency, 2001, LIDAR TQ 7478 Environment Agency D0015741 APR-2001 (Digital archive). SKE57163.

<4> Spurrell FCJ,, 1885, Early Sites and Embankments on the Margins of the Thames Estuary (Article in serial). SKE53799.

<5> Historic England, Historic England Archive (Archive). SKE58569.