Monument record TQ 97 SE 52 - Neolithic multi ditched causewayed enclosure, Kingsborough Manor

An early Neolithic causewayed enclosure over 200 m in diameter. Appeared in evaluation trenches 3 and 5 in 1999 (2). Excavated further in 2000 (1 and 3). Three circuits of enclosure ditches were found. Only the second to be recorded in Kent (the other is in Ramsgate), this feature is of regional and national importance.

The latest ditch fill produced a RadioCarbon date of 1190-920 cal BC (2868±35 BP, NZA-22280)(4). Original reference given as (Ellis and Allen in Allen et al. 2008):
Ellis, C. and Allen, M.J., 2008, The excavated evidence, in Allen M.J., Leivers M. and Ellis C., Neolithic Causewayed Enclosures and Later Prehistoric Farming: Duality, Imposition and the Role of Predecessors at Kingsborough, Isle of Sheppey, Kent, UK, Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 74, 282–88

(TQ 9765 7205) Neolithic causewayed enclosure (site of).

Excavation in 1999 by Archaeology South-East in advance of a housing development revealed part of a causewayed enclosure. Stretches of three circuits were excavated, the inner two 4m apart and the outermost 20m-25m from the middle circuit. A sizeable assemblage of bowl pottery was recovered, together with worked flint and other material. (1, 3)

Discovery of the site came too late for full inclusion in the RCHME's project on Neolithic causewayed enclosures (Oswald et al 2001). However, the site is noteworthy as an example of a site discovered through excavation and not previously identified as a cropmark. Although air photography remains the chief means by which "new" causewayed enclosures are recognised, this site underlines the fact that not all such sites will be identified from the air, even in areas susceptible to cropmark formation. (2)

The report provides a synthesis of the available material evidence from the causewayed enclosures at Kingsborough Hill, Eastchurch and Chalk Hill, Ramsgate. These discoveries and others are added to existing data in order to postulate a hypothesis about Kent's Mesolithic-Neolithic transition. It is suggested that migration from continental northern Europe was the primary agent of change. As in western Britain, islands may have served as staging posts or 'bridgeheads' where farming culture could take hold before spreading inland along the river valleys. (4)

Full excavation of the southern half of the site was undertaken prior to development. A Neolithic causewayed enclosure was identified. Three circuits of enclosure ditches were encountered. A number of features were revealed within the enclosure including the remains of a possible roundhouse, a four poster in a separate enclosure, a group of pits and post holes and a possible trackway. There were three other distinct groups of post holes and small pits at the eastern edge of the site. Probable Neolithic features were also encountered to the north of the enclosure. (5)

The Kingsborough enclosures were included in recent research into the dating of early Neolithic enclosures.
The chronological model suggests that the inner ditch of the causewayed enclosure was built probably in 3660-3580 cal BC. The Neolithic use of the causewayed enclosure ended probably in 3605-3470 cal BC. Overall, Kingsborough 1 was in use probably for 1-150 years. These large ranges are due to the small number of samples dated, but a shorter rather than a longer period of use is more probable.
The Kingsborough enclosures were both probably constructed in the 37th century cal BC or in the first decades of the 36th century cal BC, Kingsborough 2 probably being built earlier than 1. Both enclosures seem to have gone out of use in the 36th century cal BC if not before, and it is possible that both were used for only a generation or two. The sections and rapid natural silting observed especially at Kingsborough 2 may suggest that use-lives were even shorter. (6)

<1> Archaeology South-East, 2000, Archaeological investigations at Kingsborough Farm, Eastchurch, Isle of Sheppey, Kent: Post-Excavation Assessment and Draft Proposals for Future Work (Unpublished document). SKE12602.

<2> 2001, The Creation of Monuments: Neolithic Causewayed Enclosures in the British Isles (Monograph). SKE58615.

<3> Archaeology South-East, 1999, An Archaeological Evaluation at Kingsborough Farm, Eastchurch, Isle of Sheppey, Kent (Unpublished document). SKE12325.

<4> Wessex Archaeology, 2000, Kingsborough Farm Eastchurch, Isle of Sheppey, Kent. Phase 1 Stage 2 Archaeological Excavation: Summary Report (Unpublished document). SKE12298.

<5> Wessex Archaeology, 2002, Kingsborough Manor Development, Eastchurch, Isle of Sheppey, kent. Watching Briefs, Evaluation, and Phase 1, Stage 2 Excavation: Assessment Report and proposals for Post-Excavation Analyses and Publication (Unpublished document). SKE12297.

<6> Wessex Archaeology, 2008, Kingsborough Manor, Phase 3 Stages 1 and 2, Eastchurch, Isle of Sheppey, Kent (Unpublished document). SKE31436.