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Farndon Archaeology and Exploration
The site
Following on from the survey project of the Roman Legionary Tile and Pottery works in 2018, research continued into the surrounding area in the hope that previously undiscovered sites may come to light. In 2021 Chris Matthews of Archaeological Survey West, who had carried out the survey of the tile works in 2017/18, announced, We have been busy researching for a project we started in Farndon Cheshire, very close to the Holt Roman Tile Works (we surveyed in 2018). The assumption is that it’s Roman, but we are hoping for something more definitive. We aim to make sense of a small rectangular bank and ditch enclosure near Farndon. So far we have been modelling LiDAR data and combining it with a small magnetic survey we undertook last month. There is more to do and more methods to try but so far so good!
 The Townfield Lane site at ground level (pic: Chris Matthews)
We are launching a cross border archaeology project for the communities of Holt & Farndon, giving people the chance to discover and get hands on with their local history. Come and browse the project information and listen to the key talks at either 11am or 3pm by our project team. The open day will be held on the 2nd of July between two venues, the first is Farndon Memorial hall between 10:00 and 12:00. We will then move the display to the Kenyon Hall in Holt between 14:00 and 16:00 (where we will repeat the talk). The excavation is set to start on September the 10th for 10 days and will look at part of Holt & Farndon’s Roman past, by investigating a mysterious playing card shaped enclosure near Townfield lane. It is believed this enclosure may be a Roman military fort linked to the tile and pottery works at Holt. The Consultation Day was a success, with 120 people attending the two sessions in Farndon and Holt. It is hoped that enough funding can be secured to enable the full investigation to go ahead. The contribution form is above should you wish to make a donation or be involved in the project. 
 Chris Matthews @ChrisM_ASW Follow Chris on Twitter· · The Context It is assumed at this stage that the Townfield Lane site relates, or is contemporary to the Roman Tile works just upstream on the Holt side of the Dee. But it may also help our understanding of the wider Chester hinterland during the Roman period, especially in relation to other discoveries in Rossett, Plas Coch in Wrexham, Eaton-by-Tarporley, Heronbridge and Halkyn Mountain. Familiarisation of the Holt site is essential to aid understanding of the relevance and interest in the Townfield Lane project;
Rossett Roman Villa In the light of the discovery of the Roman lead ingot near Rossett in 2019, a partnership project was established between the University of Chester and Wrexham Museum with the aim of investigating its wider archaeological context. As part of this, the footprint of a winged-corridor villa was identified. This article outlines the initial findings and their potential significance. In October 2020 geophysical surveys were conducted at a site in Burton Green, Rossett, by the University of Chester, Wrexham Museum and Archaeological Survey West as part of a project entitled ‘In the Footsteps of Trebellius Maximus’. The results revealed a Roman winged corridor villa, outbuildings, associated field system and trackway. The existence of the complex had been hinted at through stray finds and metal detecting over a number of years, and a subsequent Historic Environment Record entry postulated a high-status Roman building, possibly a villa. Through magnetometry, the presence of a villa has now been confirmed. Caroline Pudney and Steve Grenter
Rossett lead ingot The first indication of a site near Rossett was the discovery of a lead ingot or pig. A pig is a roughly rectangular bar of mined metal that is shaped to be convenient for transportation to a location where it can be processed.
Metal detectorist Rob Jones discovered a metal object in a field near Rossett and careful digging revealed the corner of a lead object with ‘writing’ on it. When fully revealed, the inscription appeared to mention Marcus Trebellius Maximus, who was the governor of the province of Britannia under the Emperor Nero from AD 63-69. The Rossett find represents the only example of an inscription bearing his name ever found in the UK, and one of very few from the empire as a whole. Trebellius was partly responsible for bringing stability to Britannia after Boudica’s revolt in AD 60/1, although he was ultimately forced out of the province by mutinous Roman soldiers who were dissatisfied with the lack of military activity under his governorship.
Rob Jones, very responsibly, reported the find to the archaeological authorities, and it has now been acquired by Wrexham Museum.
The flooded River Dee below Farndon.
Map showing the Dee Flood Plain with the fortlet site circled.
(NB. Certain information about finds is witheld, and will be in the full site report by Chris Matthews later in the year)
In addition to the full time professional archaeologists on site, there were on average 18-20 volunteers most days. Few were inexperienced, and most had put in many hours on other digs in the locality, such as Holt, Rossett, Pulford, and Oswestry, plus earlier excavations across Merseyside. This include several of the local volunteers from Farndon and Holt. There were also a number of students from the Archaeology Department in the University of Chester. Many were also retirees with little signs of ageing, including a couple in their eighties!  Drone view - day one
 Torrential rain all day - work abandoned
Day 6 - 15 September 2022 By now, the discovery of so much iron slag and what looked like a bloomery suggested the site was not military after all and was more likely a Roman enclosure for iron processing. Meanwhile the search for the enclosure ditch in trench 4 continued;
Today we welcomed several visitors to the site, including Dr Caroline Pudney (Senior Lecturer in Archaeology at the University of Chester), and representatives from Cheshire West and Chester Heritage and Archaeology.
 Team Townfield! We have had some fantastic volunteers who have worked very hard in what have been difficult conditions. In summary, we came to investigate an enclosure, tentatively identified as a fort. But, we leave having discovered a Roman metalworking site/bloomery (far more interesting!). Day 9 - 18 September 2022
Roman Iron Making - The Bloomery Chris Matthews writes; A little visual aid for anyone who wants to know more about bloomeries and what we found at Townfield Lane. If you volunteered on the Townfield Lane dig, visited us or have been following the updates, this video will help to visualise what we found. Look out for the part when they break a hole in the side of the furnace and all the molten slag pours out like a tap. This is the tap slag which we found plenty of in trench 3! When it solidifies it forms nice patterns and spouts which have an almost pewter look to them. Whilst the video shows a smaller scale Medieval bloomery, the basic method is largely indistinguishable from what the Romans would have been doing on our site.
After the report has been published, it is hoped that feedback will be given to the local communities of Farndon and Holt in the form of an evening held most likely in the Farndon Memorial Hall, featuring a talk by Chris Matthews and an exhibition of finds and photographs.
Further information, when known, will be published on Twitter, Facebook, and this website.
 Townfield Lane Site Map On 23 September, Chris Matthews tweeted; Here is a sneak peak at our results. There is indeed a ditch and bank earthwork, although it was somewhat difficult to see! Within the enclosure we identified industrial activity which included a Roman bloomery furnace (used to process iron ore into workable iron).
Chris Matthews @ChrisM_ASW Follow Chris on Twitter
Further reading Books and Papers:
Greene, K. The Archaeology of the Roman Economy. Batsford (1986) Johnston, D.E. Roman Villas. Shire Archaeology (1994). Mason, D.J.P. Roman Chester. City of the Eagles. Tempus (2007) (2nd edition). Matthews, C Geophysical methodology for the Holt Roman tile works v1.1. (Unpublished report). Wrexham: Archaeological Survey West LLP (2017) Matthews, C Holt Roman tilery and pottery: geophysical investigations (Unpublished report). Wrexham: Archaeological Survey West LLP (2018)
Online (in addition to those above) Pudney, C. The highs and lows of archaeology: In the footsteps of Trebellius Maximus. Archaeology Chester, 16th Apr 2021
Andie Byrnes/Based in Churton; Clark, J. Cheshire Historic Towns Survey. Tarporley. Archaeological Assessment(2003). Environmental Planning, Cheshire County Council North, F.J. Mining for Metals in Wales. National Museum of Wales (1962). Coflein Plas Coch Romano-British Settlement https://coflein.gov.uk/en/site/422290/
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The site was made ready on Friday 9 September, with several trenches prepared intersecting the 'playing card shape' crop mark, plus an area that had suggested activity just outside of the enclosure to the north east.
