It should not be assumed that this site is publicly accessible and it may be on private property. Do not trespass.
Monument record TQ 77 NW 1283 - The site of a former 19th century sheepfold occupying a small island
Summary
The site of a former 19th century sheepfold occupying a small island approximately 20m x 30m surrounded on all sides by water-filled creeks. The site is recorded on historic 1st edition (1897) Ordnance Survey map as a sheepfold as part of the English Heritage: Hoo Peninsula Landscape Project. The site has been partially destroyed by a large drainage ditch. It is possible that the site originated as a medieval saltern mound.These 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. Many of these mounds 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. Roman finds have been extracted from some of these sites, but are believed to be from the lower levels and not associated with the mounds. Post-Roman flooding and silt deposition has resulted in Roman sites lying typically several feet below the current land surface.
Location
Grid reference | Centred TQ 7124 7807 (34m by 30m) |
---|---|
Map sheet | TQ77NW |
County | KENT |
Civil Parish | CLIFFE AND CLIFFE WOODS, MEDWAY, KENT |
Unitary Authority | MEDWAY |
Map
Type and Period (2)
Full Description
<1> RAF, 1953, NMR RAF/82/1009 0129 05-feb-1953 (Photograph). SKE57190.
<2> Ordinance Survey, 1879, Ordnance Survey: Kent Epoch 1, 1:2500 1879 (Map). SKE55861.
<3> Historic England, 2016, Archive Material (Archive). SKE57167.
Sources/Archives (3)
Finds (0)
Protected Status/Designation
- None recorded
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Events/Activities (1)
- Non-Intrusive Event: English Heritage: Hoo Peninsula Landscape Project NMP (EKE20812)
Record last edited
Oct 16 2024 3:32PM