Roman defences

1 Excavation on a supermarket site cut across a clay and gravel rampart and its ditch, which are taken to be the late 2nd century defences here taking a different line from the 4th century town-wall, remains of which were found 25m further SW. The wall had been robbed, but timber piling 3.8m wide was recorded at its base; at a later date a square external tower of similar construction had been added. A substantial stone-built structure of the early 4th century, partly examined in 1978-9, had been demolished to make way for the town-wall.
2 Excavation interim for ‘Alcester International’.
3 Location map showing RB features and archaeological activity superimposed over ‘modern’ plan.
4 Cores taken on the site, of the peaty layer underlying the Roman archaeology were analysed by the Ancient Monument Laboratory. A single core was subject to detailed assessment, recording some cereals probably brought into the town for processing. This correlates well with the interpretation of the early 4th century stone building on the site as a store, as identified in 2. Other plants, including weeds and wetland plants, are representative of vegetation in the wider area. The landscape was almost all open and cleared of woodland.