York Historic Environment Record

During a period of very wet, cold weather in October and November 1991 most of the core area of the west bank settlement was fieldwalked, an area of some 98,800 square metres. The analysed evidence suggests that most of the pottery recovered was deposited in discrete areas immediately to the reaz of road-front properties, reflecting azeas of either private or public refuse disposal. Other areas of the site showing dense concentrations of ditch divisions to the reaz of the street frontages do not show such lazge concentrations of pottery, perhaps reflecting a alternate usage. Some 6,000 sherds of pottery were recovered of which 4,000 are Roman. A Flavian element is certainly detectable within the assemblage, reflected within the Samian ware, in Rustic and Ring and Dot vessels, and also in some of the coarse plain wares. Analysis of the recovered Samian shows Neronian-Flavian and Flavian material, and interpretation suggests the possibility of an early military presence underlying the later, civilian settlement, with analogy being made with the location of the fort site at Malton. Evidence for a fort's existence is probably hidden below concentrated later town development. The continuance in the settlement's use into the 4th century is reflected in the Crambeck ware within the overall pottery assemblage. The site has produced very little stone which could be seen as building material, and no tooled or ashlar blocks have been noted. Similarly, only a small amount of tile has been recovered from the site as a whole.