This is the central part of the clay platform on the Main Site that features the two stone built drains. The western edge of this area was first excavated in 2001. An anomalous water worn stone protruded through this green clay platform and it was suggested that this was some sort of division of the clay area. It seemed to have no practical purpose other than to be an obstacle to any who walked on the platform. So it was decided to put a trench through the platform just next to this stone to primarily find out if the platform was man-made or the result of river wash or geology. Secondly, to find out how deep this stone was imbedded into the clay and possibly find its purpose. As the top 30cm of the hard packed clay was excavated, small holes started to disappear through holes on the north-west area of the trench. As these holes became bigger pieces of clay dropped through the holes and one  could be heard dropping into water. A 30cm…..cavity opened up and large stone slabs could be seen underneath and between these stones still water was clearly visible. There was  course black sand on top of the stones and the residue of red wood directly underneath. This indicated that when manufactured wood was placed over the cracks in the stones and then sand, before the clay platform. Further excavations revealed that in the north-west corner of the trench a small spring pool was surrounded by stones and at its base was flat worked white quartz. The spring seemed to be flowing as it had intended  to when the drain was originally manufactured. A division of small rocks almost up to the platform surface subdivided the spring area from the rest of the drain. The drain then continued in a southerly direction as if it were leading to the stream to the south of the site. However, after ….metres there was a stone stop in the drain indicating that it was not meant to flow south, but north. 

 

 This anomaly was explained two seasons later when area B/1 was excavated. The clay platform in this area was hard and covered by the layer of re-deposited subsoil that covered the whole main site. This subsoil peeled away from the floor which was superimposed by a fine layer of soil or decomposed clay. The re-deposited layer was completely sterile apart from certain areas in trench B/3 where the re-deposit was thinner and mole runs could clearly be seen in it with intrusive shards of ceramics from the topsoil. On the southern part of the platform was a strange circular pit. 

 

When excavated it contained at its base some fire cracked quartz stones and a few very small fragments of what appeared to be crab  claws or crayfish claws (they are at present being assessed by an expert in crustatia). The pit tapered to a small bucket shaped base and was completely lined with hard packed green clay. When the site is open and it rains in the summer this pit fills with water then very slowly drains into cracks at its base. On the north-west part of this area another hole appeared and it was decided to cut a metre  square trench to see if there was another drain under the floor. This was in fact the case, although there was no cavity under the clay it sat directly onto the same black sand and under this was the same red wood residue and another stone caped  drain. This drain however, was not over a spring and was very neatly manufactured and was dry. We do not know at present where this drain or flue goes under the platform but we are having some geophysics done this autumn and will try and find out its path. As this is not a rescue dig I am very disinclined to dig up the clay platforms until we more fully understand there purpose. 

The western edge of the platform suddenly turned from green clay to a dense orange clay and rose steeply up a slope. On top of this slope a white clay oval feature appeared. A section was excavated into this anomaly and it was found to be  a deep pit cut into the orange clay and filled with very fine sand. This we found later was associated with the flue and bowl furnace in trench C, which was directly next to it on the other side of the baulk that subdivided this area during excavation.