EDO5535 - Binnegar Quarry, East Stoke; excavation 2009

Context One excavated a round barrow (Scheduled Monument SM29062) at Binnegar Quarry in consequence of a planning application to extend quarrying on to land around the barrow and the barrow itself. Work started with a detailed survey to locate the round barrow and create a georeferenced digital map of the study area. This was followed by the machine excavation of a section of bund overlying the barrow. This was done using a 360º excavator equipped with a toothless bucket. This continued in controlled spits. An area 10m beyond the edge of the ditch was also machine excavated, giving a total investigation area of about 3m by 30m. The site was then cleaned by hand and exposed features excavated. The ring ditch was excavated in sections to sample 50% of the feature, and a central feature was also half sectioned. No artefacts of archaeological origin were recovered. Three flint flakes recovered during excavation were later identified as being natural flakes.