[NY 87677136] Roman Camp [GS] (Roman Pottery found AD1912) [TI] (1)

A Roman temporary camp about 55yds square, with gateways and traverses still visible but practically no ditch; excavated in 1912. Inside it were a number of paved areas which may have been hut floors; 3rd century pottery was also found. (2)

Resurveyed at 1:2500. The earthwork is generally as described above. The rampart has a maximum height of approx 0.5m at the north east angle, with traverses approx 0.3m high. The ditch is very superficial. (3)

Scheduled, county number 28/(19)/b. (4)

Limestone Corner Roman camp, surveyed. (5)

Scheduled. (6)

RCHME account, published reference. (7)

This camp has been re-assessed in connection with RCHME's survey and publication of Roman Camps in England. The following descriptive account is taken from the published text.
A small camp, partly excavated in 1912 (Newbold 1913, 71-4 (8b)), occupies a gentle S-facing slope, under permanent pasture, at the S edge of the summit at Limestone Corner, some 200 m S of Hadrian's Wall, and 105 m S of the Vallum. There are commanding views along the wall to the W as far as Steel Rigg, to the E into North Tynedale, and S to the valley of the South Tyne; visibility to the N is restricted by the hill summit. The camp is not quite square; the N side measures 48 m, the S 50 m, the W side 49 m and the E side 44 m. It encloses an area of about 0.2 ha (0.6 acres) within a low rampart which survives mainly as an outward-facing scarp; the latter is up to 0.6 m high, above the bottom of a shallow ditch, at best 0.1 m deep. The ditch is traceable around most of the perimeter, but it may not have been continuous; certainly its course is interruped at the NW corner by an outcrop of dolerite. As a result of later occupation of the interior of the camp, the inner scarp of the rampart is mostly obscured. Midway along each of the four sides of the camp is an entrance with an external traverse. The N entrance appears to have been blocked, presumably at a later date; its traverse, which is reduced to a low bank 8.0 m long with only vague traces of an outer ditch, is not quite parallel to the line of the rampart. An outcrop of dolerite adjoins the W end. The S entrance is disturbed by what appear to be later drains. The traverse is the best preserved of the four; measuring 8.0 long, its bank stands 0.5 m above the bottom of the ditch, which is 0.1 m deep. The E and W entrances are well preserved and seem to be inturned, but this is probably the result of their continued use during reoccupation of the camp. The ditch to the N of the E entrance has been deepened, and the spoil deposited in a bank to the E. This was presumably carried out when the camp was re-used. The E traverse bank is reduced and spread, with only possible slight traces of a ditch. The bank of the W traverse has been disturbed, perhaps by excavation, and the ditch is only partly visible. The later, turf covered remains within the camp are probably those of a farmstead, the date of which is unknown (cf RCHME 1970, 1-8, 44-53 (8c)). See NY 87 SE 18. When excavated in 1912 (Newbold 1913, 71-4) the presence of this former farmstead seems to have gone unnoticed. The rock here is very close to the surface and a trench just S of the W gateway of the camp revealed that the ditch was only about 0.6 m deep. In spite of this lack of depth, the excavators could not distinguish in the make-up of the rampart any of the turf that might have been expected to compensate for the shortage of material that must have resulted. The rampart was found to have been much spread, probably during the later occupation of the site. In the interior, irregular flagged areas were found; they were numerous in the NE quarter but absent in the SW, and were presumably associated with the farmstead. Unusually, some Roman sherds were discovered, including fragments of cooking pots and of a mortarium. Apart from some pieces which may be Black-Burnished ware (BB1) dating to the early to mid 2nd century, the pottery appears to belong to the late 3rd or early 4th century. The stratigraphical relationship of the pottery to the building of the camp is uncertain. The few sherds found in the rampart material are puzzling, but they could have been incorporated by animals or during the later occupation of the site. Full information is included in the NMR Archive. (8a)

The remains of the Roman temporary camp at Limestone Corner were seen as earthworks and mapped from air photographs. The remains are as descibed previously. The remains of the later farmstead are separately recorded as NY 87 SE 38. (8d)

Located on the English Heritage map of Hadrian's Wall 2010. (8e)

General association with HER XXXXX (farmstead UID 915803). (8)