Archaeology
Romano-British black-burnished ware 'dog dish' under excavation
The site at Court Farm was excavated between 1996 and 1997 before the construction of a new housing estate. The site was discovered as a result of fieldwalking, which found small fragments of Roman pottery in the topsoil. The subsequent excavation took place over two seasons and eventually covered an area of approximately 2 hectares (approx. 200 by 100m area).
The site was first occupied during the late 1st or 2nd century AD when a set of rectangular fields were established. The only building dated to this period is a small round or elliptical structure at the centre of the site, which was largely destroyed by the construction of later buildings.
The best evidence for occupation dated to the 3rd-4th centuries and consisted of at least four, quite large elliptical buildings, about 13-15m long and 7-8 m across. The dating evidence wasn't sufficiently precise to establish whether or not these buildings were in use at the same time, though it is possible that those to the south were constructed slightly later than those to the north. A large area to the west of the buildings may have been used as a stock enclosure and had been paved with small cobbles and partly enclosed by a ditch.
In addition to the buildings, a number of large pits were found. These may have initially been used for storage but ended being used for the disposal of rubbish. A very large pit 2m deep may have been used as a water cistern.
A large ditch at the southern end of the site contained timbers in the waterlogged fill, which were dated to the 9th century AD. These are the only excavated Anglo-Saxon remains from Merseyside north of the Mersey.
These vessels became one of the commonest pottery types found in the north west. It appears in the region around AD 120. It is found most commonly in the late 2nd century, although small quantities are found up to the 4th century. The smooth shiny exterior texture of the vessel is called burnishing. It is produced by the application of a tool to the clay when it is leather hard. This dish may have been placed in the trench as an offering.
The commonest finds from the site were small pieces of Roman pottery, mainly locally produced, though fragments of vessels imported from Gaul, Dorset and Warwickshire were also found. As well as the pottery, slag from iron working and crucibles for melting copper or bronze were found in some of the pits. Several fragments of quernstones, used for grinding grain were also found in the foundations of some buildings.
Mortaria like this one are specialist kitchen wares, mixing bowls designed for grinding food
The mortarium, or bowl, shown on this page was made at the Hartshill-Mancetter potteries in Warwickshire, which dominated the market by the 3rd century following the decline of the local industries of Wilderspool and the Cheshire Plains. The diagnostic hammerhead rim form dates from circa AD 160 onwards. The grits, known as trituration grits, are deliberately added to the surface to aid the grinding of the food and include pieces of iron ore and slag which are characteristic of the later production. This example has a very simple finger impression on the rim for a spout. The hole in the base may have been as a result of use.