Three Bronze Age ring ditches were uncovered during excavations associated with the construction of the East Kent Access route in Thanet, in Zone 23. These appeared to form part of a small group with three or four others lying outside of the investigated area to the north. They were all around 40-50m apart and lay on a ENE-WSW alignment towards the western end of a chalk ridge formed by Thorne Hill and Telegraph Hill which at 55m is the highest point in Thanet.

The western-most of these barrows measured approximately 30m in diameter. the ditch was 4-6m in width and 1.55-1.8m deep. A complex series of fills were identified, generally of a consistent nature around the ditch with nothing to indicate the presence of a bank or a mound. The pottery shows that the ditch remained partly open in the Late Bronze Age, and a Roman coin (in the upper most part of the top fill) and later Prehistoric and Roman pottery found in the upper fills shows that the ditch was still extant even in the Roman period. Evidence for a possible re cut was discovered on the northern side of the ditch, also likely Early Bronze Age date. No graves were exposed.

Two large pits were cut by the east side of the ring ditch. These represent the earliest use of the site and may be of neolithic or early bronze age date. Finds included the remains of two Late Bronze Age jars from upper fills of the ditch. (information summarised from source). (1)

Description from record TR 36 NW 483:
In 2004 Canterbury Archaeological Trust carried out an evaluation on the site of the western barrow. A large ring ditch was located though the full size and shape could not be determined. The ditch was c.4.5m at its widest and more than 1.2m deep. The calculated external diameter was c.37.5m. It was thought that elements of the mound may have survived. (2)

A ring ditch forming part of a round barrow of Bronze Age date was visible as a cropmark in NMR 4137/45 18-JUL-1988. This feature was mapped as part of the Historic England Isle of Thanet project in 2024. Note that both the spatial data for this feature derived from authority (1) and the cropmark mapping have been retained in this record. Although there is a slight discrepancy in the location of these two depictions, the cropmark mapping includes the full extent of the ring ditch beyond the edge of the excavated area. (3)

<1> Oxford Wessex Archaeology Joint Venture, 2011, East Kent Access (Phase II), Thanet, Kent: Post-Excavation Assessment Volume 1 (Unpublished document). SKE29279.

<2> Canterbury Archaeological Trust, 2004, DRAFT Interim report on the results of an Archaeological strip and map evaluation on land at Tothill Street, Minster, Kent: Field Report (Unpublished document). SKE17650.

<3> Historic England Archive, 1920-2024, Historic England Archive Specialist oblique aerial photographs, NMR 4137/45 18-JUL-1988 (Archive). SKE57106.