Details

The monument includes the buried remains of a Romano-British settlement
complex lying to the south of Evesham adjacent to the A46 Cheltenham to
Evesham Road. The remains are visible on aerial photographs as cropmarks
(areas of variable crop growth which indicate buried archaeological
features). The settlement lies in two areas of protection.
The settlement includes a series of small enclosures and building remains
aligned either side of a Roman road and in the first area of protection
which runs from north to south, parallel to the A46, on its eastern side.
At the northern end of the Roman road is a complex of irregular enclosures
surrounded by a curvilinear feature believed to be a ditch or bank
enclosing a number of buildings and their associated courtyards.
Additional courtyards and buildings lie to either side of the Roman road
visible as smaller and more regular enclosures, whilst further east are
several linear features believed to be banks and ditches enclosing small
fields and allotments associated with the buildings. Towards the southern
end of the Roman road is a junction with a second Roman road which runs
east to west, thus forming a crossroads. To the west of the A46 and lying
to the south of the second Roman road are the remains of at least two
rectilinear enclosures with hut circles, which are believed to be small
farmsteads.
All modern post and wire fences and modern surfaces are excluded from the
scheduling, although the ground beneath them is included.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Romano-British aggregate villages are nucleated settlements formed by groups
of five or more subsistence level farmsteads enclosed either indivdually or
collectively, or with no formal boundary. Most enclosures, where they occur,
are formed by curvilinear walls or banks, sometimes surrounded by ditches, and
the dwellings are usually associated with pits, stock enclosures, cultivation
plots and field systems, indicating a mixed farming economy. In use throughout
the Roman period (c.43-450 AD), they often occupied sites of earlier
agricultural settlements.
Romano-British aggregate villages are a very rare monument type with examples
recorded in the north of England and on the chalk downlands of Wessex and
Sussex. Their degree of survival will depend upon the intensity of subsequent
land use. In view of their rarity, all positively identified examples with
surviving remains are considered to merit protection.

The Romano-British settlement remains 300m and 750m north east of Narrow
Meadow Farm survive well and demonstrate a variety of settlement forms,
including farmsteads and more formal roadside settlement, suggesting that the
settlement developed over time. Building remains are expected to include
farmsteads, shops and workshops as well as a number of associated roads,
courtyards and enclosures. These remains will provide evidence of a variety of
lifestyles during the Roman period including information about the different
living standards, housing, commerce and farming methods of the Romano-British
population. Artefactual evidence will provide dating material as well as
information about trading contacts, fashions and craft production in the area.
Environmental evidence from pits, wells and buried ground surfaces, may
provide information about the diets, farming practices and surrounding natural
environment during the Roman period.

Source: Historic England