Introduction
We were invited to carry out a phosphate analysis of a suspected animal enclosure, within an Iron Age enclosure at a site near Raymoth Lane, Worksop.
Background
The bedrock of the area was known to be Triassic Sherwood Sandstone, Upper Permian Lower Magnesian Limestone and Lower Mottled Sandstone and we found the soils on the site to be typical brown earths. The site lay in an area of well drained sands and gravels, on the south east side of a low hill, in an area of waste ground within an urbanised area of Worksop.
A grid was marked out over the area of the suspected animal enclosure, and sample bags of soil was collected for phosphate analysis.
Findings
Our analysis of the samples showed no clear evidence of phosphate analysis within the area of the suspected animal enclosure, and the pattern was not obviously related to the texture of the parent material either.
Conclusions
From our investigations, we were able to tell the excavating archaeologists that we did not find higher levels of phosphate within the feature, so there was no clear evidence that it had ever been used to hold animals.