During investigations associated with the construction of the Ramsgate Harbour Approach, road in 1997/1998, a circular ring ditch was recorded in the south eastern corner of the site. The ditch was about 12m in diameter and varied between 1.38m and 2.1m in width with an irregular U-shaped profile 0.55-0.65m deep. The base of the ditch did not form a complete circuit, however, with a sunken gap just 0.25m wide to the west-south-west. It was filled with silt containing relatively infrequent small to medium chalk fragments. An assemblage of over 100 struck flints was retrieved from the fills of the ditch, along with four fresh sherds of Fengate pottery and two abraded sherds of Grooved Ware (from c 2700 BC). These presumably residual middle and late Neolithic potsherds may suggest a focus of Neolithic activity post-dating the use of the causewayed enclosure. Apart from this, very little else was recovered from the fills; a single abraded Beaker sherd and a few intrusive sherds of late Bronze Age, Iron Age and early Roman date from upper ditch fills were probably introduced by plough action. Moderately frequent cattle bone, cattle-sized, sheep-sized and indeterminate bone fragments were also retrieved, along with an eroded human tibia of a sub-adult (more than 13 years old) from an upper fill of the ditch on its eastern side; this has been radiocarbon dated to 1740-1530 cal BC.

Lying either side of the centre of the ring-ditch were two pits containing human burials. The northern of the two burial pits was positioned just to the northeast of the centre of the area encompassed by the ringditch. The subrectangular pit was aligned north-west to south-east, 1.44m long, 0.8m wide and up to 0.2m deep. Despite significant later truncation, the heavily eroded skeleton of the lone occupant of the grave survived, an adult of perhaps 25 to 35 years, possibly female, lying flexed on the left side, the arms bent up towards the head and the thighs at 90 degrees to the hips. The skeleton has been radiocarbon dated to 1980-1770 cal BC. A single decorated Beaker vessel lay crushed in situ to the south of the feet along with a small decorated and perforated jet belt- or pulley-ring. Four fragments of flint knapping debris and a burnt unworked fragment of flint were recovered from the backfill of the grave. The second burial pit lay just to the south-west of the centre of the area encompassed by the ring-ditch, 1.7m to the south-west of the other burial. The oval cut was aligned northwest to south-east, 1.2m by 1.8m broad and 0.25m deep. Although heavily truncated, the disturbed and heavily eroded remains of two individuals survived, comprising scraps of long bone from an adult (over 18 years old) and those of a child. The original disposition of the bodies could not be ascertained, but the upper jaw (maxilla) of the child’s skeleton also survived. The child was probably about 8-10 years old at death, and the maxilla has been radiocarbon dated to 1750-1610 cal BC. The backfill of the grave produced six red fox teeth from a very young animal (1-2½ months), probably residual (though it is not inconceivable they may represent a grave good), along with fragments of small mammal bone, eggshell, oyster, mussel and whelk shell, charcoal, grain and seeds. (information summarised from source) (1-2)

<1> 2019, Chalk Hill - Neolithic and Bronze Age Discoveries at Ramsgate, Kent (Monograph). SKE56208.

<2> Canterbury Archaeological Trust, 1997, Excavations at Chalk Hill, near Ramsgate, Kent 1997-98: Integrated assessment & updated research design (Unpublished document). SKE29640.