Monument record TR 15 NW 2781 - Early Neolithic pits, land off Cockering Road, New Thanington

Three early Neolithic pits were identified during a strip, map and sample excavation carried out on land off Cockering Road, New Thanington by Oxford Archaeology in 2017. The pits measured around 0.8-1.1m in diameter and 0.2-0.56m in depth. They contained Neolithic pottery, worked flint, and some plant remains including barley grain, hazelnut shell, and crab apple. The pits are interpreted (1) as evidence for transient occupation of the site, possibly associated with woodland clearance, during the Neolithic period. Further evidence for Neolithic occupation was identified to the east during the excavation, in the form of a single Middle Neolithic pit (TR 15 NW 2782). (1)

<1> Oxford Archaeology East, 2018, Land off Cockering Road, New Thanington, Canterbury, Kent Excavation Report March 2018 (Unpublished document). SKE58705.