Abstract

This report presents the results of a programme of archaeological excavation of 30
1m2 ‘test pits’ in the Leicestershire village of Great Bowden carried out in summer
2013 and 2014. The programme was funded by the Heritage Lottery with the aim of
engaging the local community in their heritage. Scores of people from the local area
took part in the excavations which provided new evidence for the development of the
area now occupied by the village from the prehistoric period onwards. This appears
to have lightly used by humans in the prehistoric period, but in the Roman period two
sites, one (near the later church) considerably larger than the other, were present
underneath the present village footprint. No evidence was found for activity in the 5th
–9th centuries AD, but finds of late Anglo-Saxon pottery, especially Stamford Ware,
indicate a thriving settlement newly founded between the mid 9
th
- mid 11th centuries.
The test pit data clearly show the settlement to have grown rapidly into a large and
densely packed village which retained some dispersed character arranged around
greens and ends after the 11th century. The settlement experienced relatively little
decline after the 14th century, and expanded again in the post-medieval period.
The excavations were carried out by members of Great Bowden Heritage and
Archaeology Society and residents of Great Bowden with advice from Access
Cambridge Archaeology using ACA’s standardised excavation and recording
methods. The site reports and background history were drafted in the first instance
by members of Great Bowden Heritage and Archaeology Group and the final edited
report with analysis of the results was prepared by Access Cambridge Archaeology.