Archaeological Excavations at Low Fen, Fen Drayton, Cambridgeshire

Abstract

Excavations in a pasture field to the north of Fen Drayton village have revealed evidence of settlement from the Neolithic through to the post-Medieval period. Short-term episodes of Neolithic occupation and part of a Bronze Age field system gave way to phases of middle/late Iron Age farmstead enclosures. The earliest enclosure contained two annular house ditches. The focus of settlement subsequently shifted south with the original enclosure being turned over to agricultural use. Overlying the whole an intricate Romano- British system of ditches or trenches was laid out in parallel and interlocking groups. The system relates to a 'villa' site to the west and may be horticultural in origin, possibly for the cultivation of vines or fruit trees.