Monument record MKE131481 - Two Neolithic post built structures

Two post hole structures were located, one in at the extreme eastern end of the scheme, the other within area 9. Structure 1 consisted of six post holes about 2m apart forming a circular arrangement around 4m in diameter. the post holes were oval or near circular in plan, between 0.38m and 0.51m in diameter and generally no more than 0.4m in depth. They were filled with loose brown loam or silty clay with chalk fragments. A porched structure was situated on its south east side, represented by two elongated post pits set 1.5m apart and situated 1.75m out from the circle of post holes. Structure two also consisted of six post holes forming a structure around 4m in diameter with a porch on the south-east side. no internal features or floors were associated with either of the hut circles and the post holes had been heavily truncated by ploughing. The lack of artefactual evidence or associated features makes the date and function of the Monkton structures difficult to ascertain. It position in relation to the early bronze age ring ditches which is suggestive of a Neolithic date, if structure 2 post dated the ring ditch, its entrance would have immediately exited into the ring ditch and would have been masked by the central mound. Circular timber structures pre dating the bronze age are not unknown, with examples found dating to the Beaker periods and middle and later Neolithic. Only structure 1 produced any finds from the fills of the post holes, which were all neolithic in date; one neolithic flint scraper, three flakes and a fragment of saddle quernstone. The function of these structures is unknown. The lack of midden deposits or associated refuse pits may be indicative of a specialised non domestic function. The position near the late ring ditches may not be completely accidental. There have been studies that have drawn attention to the unusual, often dramatic topological siting of many neolithic buildings and their association with later monumental sepulchres, suggesting that the move from timber structures to earthen tumuli represent a ‘reinterpretation of place’. It is possible that these early timber structures are positioned at this location to take advantage of the views of the entrance to the wantsum and the sea and may not be dwellings but possibly specialised structures perhaps related to the commemoration of the dead. (1-2)

<1> Canterbury Archaeological Trust, 1996, Canterbury's Archaeology 1994 - 1995 (Serial). SKE11882.

<2> CAT, 2008, At the Great Crossroads: Prehistoric, Roman and Medieval Discoveries on the Isle of Thanet 1994-1995 (Monograph). SKE59036.