Details

The monument includes the earthwork and buried remains of a moated site on
the north side of a stream known as Den Beck, formerly Denton Beck. It relates
to the medieval settlement of Appleton, other remains of which survive to the
north east and east of the moated site and are the subject of a separate
scheduling.

The moat is recorded on a map drawn in 1617 from an original survey of 1595,
on which it is named as Lynes Moat, and also on the tithe map of 1839. Part
of it has since been infilled, but the full extent is known from the maps and
the infilled sections are still marked in places by slight irregularities in
the ground surface. It defines three enclosures or partial enclosures,
bounded on the south side by the stream which originally supplied it with
water. The channel of the stream may have been modified when the moat was
constructed, but has undergone extensive recutting and cleaning in modern
times and is not included in the scheduling.

The part of the moat which remains open is now dry and is approximately 2m
deep and between 8m and 15m wide. It extends north westwards from the stream
for a distance of about 42m, then WSW for 112m, bordered by the remains of an
internal bank about 0.5m high. These features, with the stream to the south,
define a sub-rectangular enclosure measuring about 103m east-west by up to 37m
across internally, bounded on the west side by a bank about 0.4m high. From
the western end of the open section the buried part of the moat continues
north westwards for approximately 55m, then returns north eastwards for
approximately 132m. The area contained within this northern part was
subdivided by an extension of the moat projecting southward from the northern
arm so as to enclose a rectangular island measuring about 42m east-west by
40m internally, with an open ended enclosure to the east. The surface of the
island appears to have been artificially raised, forming a platform which
probably supported a building, and the southward projection of the moat which
divided it from the open ended enclosure to the east remains visible as a
slight depression in the ground surface.

The moated site is thought to have contained a homestead with associated yards
in the medieval period, and the name Lyne's Moat probably derives from that of
an early occupant. A Mary Berney, who went to live with her aunt at Appleton
Hall around 1623, is recorded as saying that her uncle, Sir Edward Paston, who
was then lord of the manor, had a moated house in a wood about half a mile
from the hall where visiting Roman Catholic priests were entertained, and this
could refer to Lynes Moat. It is shown as unoccupied on the early 17th century
map, but since the latter appears to show only the buildings which existed at
the time of the original survey and does not include Appleton Hall, built by
Sir Edward around 1598, it is possible that a house had been constructed on
the moated site in the interim. The reference may, however, be to another
moated site which is shown on the map about 325m further west along the stream
and to the south of a wood.

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

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Around 6,000 moated sites are known in England. They consist of wide ditches,
often or seasonally water-filled, partly or completely enclosing one or more
islands of dry ground on which stood domestic or religious buildings. In some
cases the islands were used for horticulture. The majority of moated sites
served as prestigious aristocratic and seigneurial residences with the
provision of a moat intended as a status symbol rather than a practical
military defence. The peak period during which moated sites were built was
between about 1250 and 1350 and by far the greatest concentration lies in
central and eastern parts of England. However, moated sites were built
throughout the medieval period, are widely scattered throughout England and
exhibit a high level of diversity in their forms and sizes. They form a
significant class of medieval monument and are important for the understanding
of the distribution of wealth and status in the countryside. Many examples
provide conditions favourable to the survival of organic remains.

The moated site 390m south west of the remains of St Mary's Church is one of
several surviving monuments relating to what appears to have been a medieval
dispersed settlement, defined by the lack of a single, nucleated focus such as
a village, and characterised instead by several units such as farmsteads
spread across the area of a parish or township. As a group these monuments,
which include the remains of the parish church, a moated manor house and a
farmstead, will contribute to the knowledge and understanding of medieval
settlement patterns within this region of Norfolk.

The moated site is believed to have remained undisturbed by occupation since
the 17th century at latest, and possibly since the medieval period, and the
full extent of it is well documented in an early 17th century map and in the
19th century tithe map. The earthworks of the southern part of moat survive
well, and the parts which have been infilled will survive as buried features.
The monument as a whole will retain archaeological information relating to the
construction of the moat and the lives of its subsequent inhabitants, as well
as its function in relation to the settlement of which it formed a part.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Trappes-Lomax, T P, 'Norfolk Archaeology' in Roman Catholicism in Norfolk, 1559 - 1780, , Vol. 32, (1961), 31
Other
NRO ref. BRA 2524/6, Wright, Thomas , Descriptio Manerii de Apleton, (1595)
Title: Tithe Map of Appleton
Source Date: 1839
Author:
Publisher:
Surveyor:
NRO ref. DN/TA 165

Source: Historic England