10 Jul Investigations shedding light on Roman Haverhill, Suffolk
Headland’s South & East office is now 8 weeks into our excavation at Haverhill in Suffolk. We have revealed a multi-phase rural Roman settlement comprising enclosures, post-built structures, round and rectangular buildings. These phases of settlement will, upon analysis reveal much about the transition from indigenous building and farming practices to Romanised ways of life. We have been particularly struck by the routeways which have been recorded leading into the site, these will tell us much about when certain enclosures were in use and when they had been infilled. They also hint at the wider connections of the settlement where did these routes come from and take people to, what goods were brought in? Haverhill lies on the route of Roman Worstead Street. The road ran between Cambridge (Durolipons) and Colchester (Colonia Victricensis) and its exact route through or around Haverhill is not well established. The investigation at Haverhill Research Park has revealed an important settlement for the area and its proximity to this Roman road and whether it helps define the route of that road will be considered during our analysis. By so doing we look for ways to learn about the ‘site’ and the ‘landscape’ it sits within.
Project Manager, James Newboult will be giving a radio interview about our investigation (BBC Radio Suffolk) on 5 July 2012. Our client, Nic Rumsey, director of Carisbrooke Developments will also take part in the interview and said: “Whilst we are working to promote the future economic growth of Haverhill, we are, of course, keen to participate in discovering the archaeological history of this important gateway site. We hope that these works will extend our knowledge of human history well beyond the limits of existing written records.”
You can see a virtual animation on Haverhill Research Park website shows the high quality of accommodation that the park will provide comprising up to 450,000 sq ft of office / laboratory / technology and supporting accommodation for a wide spectrum of companies from start-ups to global players.