Details

The monument includes the remains of a medieval settlement and traces of
contemporary farming, located 250m south west of Crew's Farm. The monument is
located in a wide clay vale 500m south of a steep sided clay ridge on which
the village of Brinkworth is built.
The medieval settlement comprises a group of regular house platforms situated
on a slight rise in ground level. They are up to 1m high and cover an area
measuring 100m north-south and 80m east-west, surrounded by a ditch up to 1m
deep and 2m wide. A substantial hollow way up to 1.5m deep flanks the northern
edge of the settlement and runs east west for a length of 200m to the north of
the platforms.
Traces of medieval cultivation in the form of ridge and furrow is visible in
the fields to the east and west of the settlement. The best preserved areas of
the ridge and furrow have been included in the scheduling.
All cattle troughs and fence posts are excluded from the scheduling, although
the ground beneath these features is included.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Medieval rural settlements in England were marked by great regional diversity
in form, size and type, and the protection of their archaeological remains
needs to take these differences into account. To do this, England has been
divided into three broad Provinces on the basis of each area's distinctive
mixture of nucleated and dispersed settlements. These can be further divided
into sub-Provinces and local regions, possessing characteristics which have
gradually evolved during the last 1500 years or more.
The Upper Avon and Thames local region has mixed characteristics, with
elements of both `village' and `woodland' landscapes. It is distinguished by
substantial densities of villages and hamlets associated with moderate numbers
of scattered farmsteads, giving a rather dense overall pattern, but the region
still carried woodland in 1086, and the Braden and Chippenham Forests reflect
this.

The medieval settlement 250m south west of Crew's Farm is well preserved and
is a good example of its type. It will contain archaeological remains and
environmental evidence relating to the settlement while the ridge and furrow
will provide insights into the agricultural practice of its inhabitants.

Source: Historic England