{"id":2195,"date":"2017-11-13T10:56:13","date_gmt":"2017-11-13T10:56:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uniofglos.blog\/?p=2195"},"modified":"2024-11-05T12:07:51","modified_gmt":"2024-11-05T12:07:51","slug":"the-archaeology-of-cleeve-common","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.glos.ac.uk\/history\/2017\/11\/13\/the-archaeology-of-cleeve-common\/","title":{"rendered":"The Archaeology of Cleeve Common"},"content":{"rendered":"

This post comes from Visiting Fellow in Landscape Archaeology at the University, Dr Tim Copeland.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

\"P127541\"
The ‘Masts Field’ of Cleeve Common visible from Cheltenham<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The three tall radio masts on the hill above Cheltenham are ready identifiable from all parts of the town and much of the Severn Valley. They are sited on the lip of the Cotswold Edge with Cleeve Common behind them gently sloping away to the east. The geology of the Common is free draining oolitic limestone with a surface of close-cropped grass which has been kept short by flocks of sheep since the Middle Ages, accompanied in the last decade by a herd of Banded Galloway cows. These attributes make the Common a favourite place for dog walkers as it offers a dry, flat landscape for running and chasing balls. This open environment was probably wooded in the distant past, but since at the least the Bronze Age (c.2500- c.800BCE) it has been de-forested by human activities. These activities have left traces in terms of up-standing earthworks which can be identifiable by archaeologists since the ground has never been ploughed and the features are relatively undamaged. The \u2018relatively\u2019 is because there is also a \u2018quarry\u2019 and \u2018golf course\u2019 which have partially destroyed, hidden or modified some of the older features.<\/p>\n

Cleeve Common has a number of archaeological sites protected by the government as \u2018Scheduled Ancient Monuments\u2019 (SAMs) and which are readily identified in the landscape. The earliest is a Bronze Age \u2018cross dyke\u2019, probably defining ownership of land on either side: a prehistoric fence. The largest monument is a late Bronze\/early Iron Age (c.800-600BCE) enclosure surrounded by two ditches and banks, delineating a now semi-circular space. Whether it once was a whole circle we do not know as half of its possible area has been quarried away. On maps the feature is identified as a \u2018hillfort\u2019 with defensive functions, although more recent interpretation suggest that seasonal festivals would have taken place in the enclosure with markets, arranged marriages, and religious rituals being celebrated. The third SAM is on the side of the Common and comprises two late Iron Age\/early Roman (100BCE-100AD) features, but the platform on which they were built has been turned into a golf green causing much damage to the archaeological evidence.<\/p>\n