Four Winds, The Platt, Old Amersham, Buckinghamshire

An Archaeological Evaluation

for Mrs V Ruyters

by Kate Taylor 

Thames Valley Archaeological Services Ltd

Site Code TPA01/65

July 2001

Summary

Site name: Four Winds, The Platt, Old Amersham, Buckinghamshire Grid reference: SU 9567 9716 Site activity: Evaluation trenching Date and duration of project: 20th July 2001 Project manager: Kate Taylor Site supervisor: Kate Taylor Site code: TPA01/65 Area of site: 80sq m Summary of results: No archaeological deposits found, possible quarry located. Monuments identified: ?Quarry Location of archive: The archive is currently held by Thames Valley Archaeological Services, 47–49 De Beauvoir Road, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 5NR. It is anticipated that the archive will be deposited with Buckinghamshire Museum Service in due course, given that permission is received to deposit the artefacts. This report may be copied for bona fide research or planning purposes without the explicit permission of the copyright holder Report edited/checked by: Steve Ford 2/8/01 Steve Preston 3/8/01

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Four Winds, The Platt, Amersham, Buckinghamshire An Archaeological Evaluation

by Kate Taylor

Report 01/65

Introduction

This report documents the results of an archaeological field evaluation carried out at Four Winds, The Platt,

Amersham (SU 9567 9716) (Fig. 1). The work was commissioned by Mrs V Ruyters of Four Winds.

A planning application (01/0497) has been made to Chiltern District Council for the construction of an

extension to a grade II listed, 17th-century house. An archaeological field evaluation has been requested in order

to provide information on the archaeological potential of the site. This will be used to draw up a mitigation

strategy for the development to minimize the effects of the development on archaeological deposits.

This is in accordance with the Department of the Environment’s Planning Policy Guidance, Archaeology

and Planning (PPG 16 1990) and the District’s policies on archaeology. The field investigation was carried out

to a specification approved by Mr Sandy Kidd of Buckinghamshire County Archaeological Service. The

fieldwork was undertaken by Kate Taylor and Chris Clarke on 20th July 2001 and the site code is TPA01/65.

Location, topography and geology

The site is located on the southern side of The Platt, a lane that runs up a steep hill to the west of Whielden Street

in Old Amersham Town (Fig. 2). The High Street and Market Square are just 150m to the north. The High Street

is aligned on the River Misbourne and Whielden Street, too, appears to follow the line of a dry valley, a

possibility that is supported by the geological information. According to the British Geological Survey (BGS

1974) the underlying geology is river gravel overlying the Upper Chalk which should be a soft white chalk with

many flints. The trench did not reveal the natural geology at any point but the lower fills were fairly rich in chalk

suggesting that this is likely to be the nature of the deposits here. The site lies at a height of approximately 94m

above Ordnance Datum.

Archaeological background

The brief prepared by Mr Kidd highlighted the archaeological potential of the site. The property lies on The

Platt, which is in the historic core of the medieval town of Amersham (now known as Amersham Old Town).

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The town is mentioned in Domesday Survey of 1086 when it comprised a manor held by Geoffrey de

Mandeville and a number of smaller holdings which are also documented by later manuscripts. Amersham was

granted a charter to hold a market in AD 1200 and it is likely that the borough was established around this time,

but the extent of the settlement is not known. The Platt contains several buildings of 16th- and 17th-century date,

but it is not clear if this was the first time that the area was developed as part of the town or if the lane is a part of

an earlier element.

A brief examination of historical maps showed that Four Winds is recorded on a 1742 ‘Plan of the Town of

Agmondesham’ under the ownership of a Mr George Wright. The Platt at this time is labelled as Common Plat.

An 1838 ‘Plan of the Parish of Amersham’, taken from the tithe map, shows the lane but no buildings. It is not

clear why the house is missing from the 1900 and 1938 Ordnance Survey maps but it is shown on the 1925

edition with a small structure in the south-eastern corner of the garden. None of the maps examined shows any

activity on the portion of the plot under investigation in this evaluation. A list of the maps examined is given in

Appendix 2.

Objectives and methodology

The purpose of the evaluation was to determine the presence/absence, extent, condition, character, quality and

date of any archaeological deposits within the area of development. In particular, evidence of the use of the plot

prior to the construction of the current, 17th-century, house was sought. A single trench, 10m long and 1.6m

wide, was to be dug within the footprint of the proposed extension, to the top of the archaeological deposits or

the natural geology, whichever was first encountered. This was excavated under constant archaeological

supervision by a small tracked machine using a toothless ditching bucket. The spoil heap was monitored for

finds.

The trench is described in Appendix 1.

Results

Trench 1 (Figs 3 and 4; Plate 1)

Although the trench was intended to be 10m long and 1.6m wide, in the event constraints of machine access and

the unexpected depth, a maximum of 1.80m, meant that its final dimensions were 5.2m by 1.75m. The topsoil

was up to 0.62m thick, reflecting the build up of garden soil in the 19th and 20th centuries. Below this was what

may represent a buried soil layer (50), a grey-brown silty clay with frequent chalk flecks. This was exposed

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along the full length of the trench and fully removed by machine at the northern end, but only half its width

along the rest of the trench, showing it to be 0.68m thick. It produced 23 sherds of 17th-century pottery and six

fragments of clay pipe, which date from 1700–1770, suggesting an early 18th-century date for the deposit.

Removal of this layer revealed another deposit, 51, visible along the entire length of the trench. At the southern

end, a test pit was dug into this by machine and, when beyond the reach of the machine, by hand. The maximum

thickness seen was 0.50m, giving the trench a depth of 1.8m at this point, but the lower horizon of the deposit

was not reached. The deposit was a firm orange clay with patches, and occasional lumps, of chalk, and produced

a single sherd of 17th-century pottery and four fragments of tile. Given the great depth of the trench in

comparison to the surrounding ground surface it seems likely that this layer is in fact the infill of a large negative

feature, such as a quarry, backfilled in the 17th century.

Finds

Pottery by Paul Blinkhorn

The pottery assemblage comprised 24 sherds with a total weight of 343g. All the wares are well-known types,

and were recorded using the coding system and chronology employed by the Milton Keynes Archaeological Unit

(Mynard and Zeepvat 1992; Zeepvat et al. 1994).

Trailed slip-ware (MK PM5). 17th century. 2 sherds, 35g.

Red Earthenware (MK PM8). 17th century. 19 sherds, 257g.

Black-glazed coarsewares (MK PM16). 17th century. 1 sherd, 14g.

Green-glazed white ware (MK PM18). 17th century. 1 sherd, 15g.

Westerwald Stoneware: (MK PM32). 17th century. 1 sherd, 22g.

All the pottery was recovered from context 50, with the exception of a single sherd of PM8 (7g) from context 51.

Both groups of material are likely to date to the 17th century.

Clay pipe by Nicola Powell

Six pieces of clay pipe weighing a total of 30g were recovered from deposit 50. These comprised four plain stem

fragments, one stem fragment decorated with a rib and leaves, and one bowl. The latter piece can be dated by

form to 1700–1770, and as the stems have similarly bored holes, the entire assemblage is probably of this date.

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Tile

Deposit 51 produced four pieces of tile weighing 166g in total. One large piece had the remains of a peg-hole

whilst the others were smaller fragments. They cannot be dated more closely than being medieval or post-

medieval.

Animal bone by Sian Anthony

Two small pieces of bone weighing 8g were recovered from deposit 51. These are fragments of a rib and a

scapula from cattle-sized animals.

Conclusion

This field evaluation has shown that, in the location of the trench at least, there would appear to be a large

negative feature, perhaps a quarry, underlying the current ground surface. This appears to have been backfilled in

the 17th century, possibly during construction of the house, as it is difficult to imagine the house being built or

occupied with such a large hole in close proximity. No quarries or similar features appear on the historical maps

examined, and so the extent of this activity is unknown. As this feature is at least 1.8m deep and larger than the

evaluation trench, it will almost certainly have totally removed any earlier archaeological deposits and it seems

unlikely that this part of the proposed development will disturb any archaeological deposits earlier than the 17th

century.

References BGS, 1974, British Geological Survey, 1:50000, Sheet 255, Drift Edition, Keyworth Mynard, D C and Zeepvat, R J, 1992, Great Linford, Buckinghamshire Archaeol Soc Monogr Ser 3 PPG 16, 1990, Archaeology and Planning, Dept Environment Planning Policy Guidance 16, HMSO Zeepvat, R J, Roberts, J S and King, N A, 1994, Caldecotte, Milton Keynes. Excavation and Fieldwork 1966-91,

Buckinghamshire Archaeol Soc Monogr Ser 4

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APPENDIX 1: Trench details Trench No. Length (m) Breadth (m) Depth (m) Comment

1 5.2 1.75 1.3 test pit 1.8

0.00-0.62 topsoil; 0.62-1.30 mid grey/brown slightly silty clay (50); 1.30+ orange clay (51)

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APPENDIX 2: Cartographic sources consulted

1742 A map of the town of Agmondesham 1838 Plan of the parish of Amersham (taken from the tithe map) 1870 Ordnance Survey, First Edition, Buckinghamshire, Sheet XLIII-NW 1900 Ordnance Survey, Second Edition, County 6” Series, Buckinghamshire, XLIII-NW 1925 Ordnance Survey, 25” Series, Buckinghamshire, XLIII -5 1938 Ordnance Survey, Provisional Edition, County 6” Series, Buckinghamshire, XLIII-NW

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Four Winds, The Platt, Old Amersham,Buckinghamshire, 2001

Figure 1. Location of site within Old Amersham andBuckinghamshire.

Reproduced from Ordnance Survey Pathfinder 1138 SU89/99 1:25000Ordnance Survey Licence AL523324A0001

94000

95000

96000

97000

98000

99000

SU95000 96000 97000 98000

SITE

TPA01/65

SITE

0

N

Four Winds, The Platt, Old Amersham,Buckinghamshire, 2001

Figure 2. Location of site. TPA01/65

100m

The Platt

Site

97100

97200

SU95600 95700

Whield

en Str

eet

N

Four Winds, The Platt, Old Amersham,Buckinghamshire, 2001

TPA01/65

0

Location ofproposed

new building

Section 1

20m

9570095680SU95660

1

Figure 3. Plan of site showing location of trench.

Site boundary

97160

N S

0

Four Winds, The Platt, Old Amersham,Buckinghamshire, 2001

TPA01/65Figure 4. Representative section.

1m

50

51

topsoil

Plate 1. Trench 1 looking north, scale 1m.

TPA01/65

Report edited/checked by: Steve Ford 2/8/01 Report 01/65 Introduction

Finds Clay pipe by Nicola Powell Tile Animal bone by Sian Anthony