Ham & Doulting Stone Quarry, Ham Hill, Somerset. An Archaeological Evaluation.

Abstract

Between 12th and 17th November 2021, an archaeological trench evaluation was undertaken at Ham Hill, Somerset, by the Cambridge Archaeological Unit (CAU) in response to a proposal by The Ham & Doulting Stone Company to extend quarry works by 2.23ha southward from its existing operations. Occupied since at least the early Neolithic, the site is one of Britain’s largest prehistoric hillforts, totalling 88.1ha and a Scheduled Ancient Monument (SAM 1003678). Subject to quarrying since its Roman occupation, the hill is the primary source of Ham Stone which, since at least the Medieval period, has been the preferred building stone both locally and regionally for ecclesiastical foundations, stately homes and other important structures. Their continued conservation relies on this scarce resource. Fourteen trenches were opened but no archaeological features were found during the investigation, which encountered only quarrying waste and, in three trenches, unquarried bedrock that represents the depth limit of historical quarry works. The trenching demonstrated significant quarrying impact to depths likely to have truncated and probably removed archaeological horizons. The quarry waste contained cultural materials that indicate the landscape’s former prehistoric and Roman occupation, as well as documenting historical aspects of its quarrying operations into the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.