Wanstead Park
In July 2009 I joined the West Essex Archaeological Group in a weekend dig at Wanstead Park. The trench I helped explore was very long and thin, starting at the path by the pond and leading up the northern slope. Gillian, Marion, John and I took the end by the pond. We cleared several pieces of broken Roman tile that was scattered along one strip [level 6] as well as other random tile pieces from further up the trench [level 7]. We also found tesserae, small pieces of blacked burnished ware, one slither of glass, a small lump of metal and hypocaust and mortarium pieces. We cleared the surrounding area down to the natural gravel to expose what seemed like a slight ditch, underneath the strip layer of tile. On the pond side of this ditch a compacted layer of soil and larger pebbles could be clearly seen. Was this the base of a Roman path?
Two silver coins were found over the weekend. One from the square trench as it was initially being dug and the other came from the top end of the long trench. The first could be dated to approx. 350AD and at first sight, the second coin was thought to be the same.
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