Monument record TQ 95 SW 177 - Iron Age cremation burials, Tanyard Farm

Three Iron Age cremation burials were identified during an excavation carried out at Tanyard Farm at some time between 2020-2023. The cremations contained a large number of grave goods including plates with food offerings, some of which still had bones which remained in situ, copper alloy brooches, pottery vessels imported from the continent, part of a dog skeleton, and a large metal cauldron. The wealth of grave goods suggests (1) that the cremations were of high status individuals.

The three cremations were located between a trackway and a Roman ditch (TQ 95 SW 160). Whilst the ditch did not exist at the same time as the cremations, the trackway, whilst appearing to have been in use during the Roman period, may have had its origins in the late Iron Age. Further Iron Age features included ditches, some of which may have been associated with the earliest phase of the trackway. (1)

<1> Thames Valley Archaeological Services, 2023, Land at Tanyard Farm, Lenham, Kent Archaeological Post-excavation Assessment (Unpublished document). SKE58589.