Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

EN2442 Copy's Green, Norfolk

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

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HER:  Norfolk 2072 (None)

NMR:  TF 9 3 NE 1 (359005)

SM:  None

NGR:  TF 9548 3921

X:  595450  Y:  339210  (OSGB36)

Summary

Located E of Copy's Green on a gentle hilltop. Completely ploughed away, discovered from an aerial photograph in 1953, rectangular with rounded corners measuring 100m E-W and 67m N-S, 0.25ha. Small-scale excavation in 1957 and 1958 showed V-shaped ditches, 5.6m wide by 2.3m deep, with flint cobbling and hearth (Gregory 1986). A single entrance in the middle of the E side, 3.6m wide. Pottery suggests construction in the 1st century BC. Roman coins and pottery sherds were also found inside the fort, suggesting it was re-occupied by from 1st to 3rd centuries AD probably when the earthworks were dis-used. Aerial photographs taken in 1987 showed that a possible Bronze Age ring ditch existed inside the fort and metal detecting in the interior found a Middle to Late Saxon strap end. A possible hillfort.

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Unconfirmed

Location

X:  100800  Y:  6967239  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  0.9055012916578074  Latitude:  52.91471783701243  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  England

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Norfolk

Historic County:  Norfolk

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Wighton

Monument Condition

None

Condition:
Extant   ✗
Cropmark   ✓
Likely Destroyed   ✗

Land Use

None

Current Use:
Woodland   ✗
Commercial Forestry Plantation   ✗
Parkland   ✗
Pasture (Grazing)   ✗
Arable   ✓
Scrub/Bracken   ✗
Bare Outcrop   ✗
Heather/Moorland   ✗
Heath   ✗
Built-up   ✗
Coastal Grassland   ✗
Other   ✗

Landscape

Hillfort Type

Sub-rectangular enclosure on gentle hilltop

Type:
Contour Fort   ✗
Partial Contour Fort   ✓
Promontory Fort   ✗
Hillslope Fort   ✗
Level Terrain Fort   ✗
Marsh Fort   ✗
Multiple Enclosure Fort   ✗

Topographic Position

Position:
Hilltop   ✓
Coastal Promontory   ✗
Inland Promontory   ✗
Valley Bottom   ✗
Knoll/Hillock/Outcrop   ✗
Ridge   ✗
Cliff/Plateau-edge/Scarp   ✗
Hillslope   ✗
Lowland   ✗
Spur   ✗

Dominant Topographic Feature:  On hilltop

Aspect:
North   ✗
Northeast   ✗
East   ✗
Southeast   ✗
South   ✗
Southwest   ✗
West   ✗
Northwest   ✗
Level   ✓

Altitude:  16.7m

Boundary

N/A


Dating Evidence

Dating by pottery suggests 1st century BC construction with subsequent Romano-British occupation. Possible ring-ditch in interior from aerial photograph.

Reliability:  C - Low

Principal Activity:
Pre 1200BC   ✗
1200BC - 800BC   ✗
800BC - 400BC   ✗
400BC - AD50   ✓
AD50 - AD400   ✗
AD400 - AD 800   ✗
Post AD800   ✗
Unknown   ✗

Other Activity:
Pre Hillfort:   None
Post Hillfort:   None

Evidence:
Artefactual:   None

Investigation History

Aerial photographic evidence from 1953 and 1987, excavation in 1957 and 1958.

Investigations:
Other (1953):   None
Other (1987):   None
Excavation (None):   None

Interior Features

Hearth and cobbled surface shown by excavation, 1st century BC pottery found, copper alloy objects and some animal bone

Water Source

None

Source:
None   ✓
Spring   ✗
Stream   ✗
Pool   ✗
Flush   ✗
Well   ✗
Other   ✗

Surface

None

Interior Features (Surface):
No Known Features   ✓
Round Stone Structures   ✗
Rectangular Stone Structures   ✗
Curvilinear Platforms   ✗
Other Roundhouse Evidence   ✗
Pits   ✗
Quarry Hollows   ✗
Other   ✗

Excavation

Hearth and cobbled surface

Interior Features (Excavation):
No Known Excavation   ✗
Pits   ✗
Postholes   ✗
Roundhouses   ✗
Rectangular Structures   ✗
Roads/Tracks   ✗
Quarry Hollows   ✗
Other   ✓
Nothing Found   ✗

Geophysics

None

Interior Features (Geophysics):
No Known Geophysics   ✓
Pits   ✗
Roundhouses   ✗
Rectangular Structures   ✗
Roads/Tracks   ✗
Quarry Hollows   ✗
Other   ✗
Nothing Found   ✗

Finds

None

Interior (Finds):
No Known Finds   ✗
Pottery   ✓
Metal   ✓
Metalworking   ✗
Human Bones   ✗
Animal Bones   ✓
Lithics   ✗
Environmental   ✗
Other   ✗

Aerial

NO APPARENT FEATURES

Interior Features (Aerial):
APs Not Checked   ✗
None   ✓
Roundhouses   ✗
Rectangular Structures   ✗
Pits   ✗
Postholes   ✗
Roads/Tracks   ✗
Other   ✗

Entrances

A single entrance in the middle of the E side, a simple gap 3.6m wide

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
1:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:
1. Simple Gap (East):   None

Enclosing Works

No evidence for rampart, ploughed away, excavation of ditch shows it to be V-shaped 5.6m wide by 2.3m deep

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.25ha.
Total:   0.25ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✗   None

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   1
SE Quadrant:   1
SW Quadrant:   1
NW Quadrant:   1
Total:   1

Morphology

Current Morphology:
Partial Univallate   ✗
Univallate   ✓
Partial Bivallate   ✗
Bivallate   ✗
Partial Multivallate   ✗
Multivallate   ✗
Unknown   ✗

Detailed Morphology:
Partial Univallate   ✗
Univallate   ✗
Partial Bivallate   ✗
Bivallate   ✗
Partial Multivallate   ✗
Multivallate   ✗

Surface Evidence

None

Enclosing Works (Surface):
None   ✓
Earthen Bank   ✗
Stone Wall   ✗
Rubble   ✗
Wall-walk   ✗
Evidence of Timber   ✗
Vitrification   ✗
Other Burning   ✗
Palisade   ✗
Counter Scarp Bank   ✗
Berm   ✗
Unfinished   ✗
Other   ✗

Excavated Evidence

None

Enclosing Works (Excavation):
None   ✓
Earthen Bank   ✗
Stone Wall   ✗
Murus Duplex   ✗
Timber-framed   ✗
Timber-laced   ✗
Vitrification   ✗
Other Burning   ✗
Palisade   ✗
Counter Scarp Bank   ✗
Berm   ✗
Unfinished   ✗
No Known Excavation   ✗
Other   ✗

Other

Gang Working:
✗   None

Ditches:
✓   None

Number of Ditches:  1

Annex:
✗   None

References

Gregory, T. 1986. An enclosure at Wighton, in Excavations at Thornham, Warham, Wighton and Caister, Norfolk, E Anglian Archaeol Rep. No. 30, 27-31.



Terms of Use

This work is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 and should be cited as:

Lock, Gary and Ralston, Ian. 2024. Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland. Available at: https://hillforts.arch.ox.ac.uk


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