AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT OF THE PREHISTORIC
LANDSCAPE AT CALLERBURN FARM, BRANXTON, NORTH
NORTHUMBERLAND.
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

To increase our understanding of human settlement and land use in prehistory in
Branxton, North Northumberland.
 To evaluate the for a future project for design and funding
From 2011
 To study the wider landscape of North Northumberland to contribute to the
understanding of human settlement patterns and land use in prehistory.
 To critically evaluate current interpretations on settlement and land use in North
Northumberland
 To demonstrate the contribution that community archaeological groups can make
to archaeological research in North Northumberland.
 To provide accurate information from a community excavation on prehistoric
settlement and land use for archaeological interpretation and research.
INTRODUCTION
This proposal forms part of a research project exploring prehistoric settlement patterns
and land use in North Northumberland. The conception of this project was as a direct
result of involvement in the Flodden 500 project, a community based project under the
direction of the county archaeologist Chris Burgess. The aim of Flodden 500 is to
identify all the archaeological remains left behind during the passage of the Scottish and
English armies on their approach to, and withdrawal from Braxton, where the battle of
Flodden took place in 1513. The project involves archaeological survey, small scale
excavation and fieldwalking. The remit was to collect all the archaeological and historic
remains found during fieldwalking. This resulted in the recovery of a considerable
number of Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age chipped stone tools which pre-date the Battle
of Flodden by thousands of years. The chipped stone tools are to some extent outside the
scope of the project, however, the large number of tools collected, particularly in the high
concentration at Field1 during the fieldwalking season warrants further investigation.
BACKGROUND TO THIS PROJECT
This project will consider the spatial distribution of the chipped stone tools in order to
target a site that could provide evidence of prehistoric activity and or settlement. The
project will involve small scale excavation, landscape survey, fieldwalking results and
critical evaluation of current archaeological to explore prehistoric settlement patterns and
land use in North Northumberland.
The incidence and distribution of the chipped stone tools were entered onto a database
and the results plotted on a distribution map by Chris Burgess. The spatial distribution
map figure 1 shows that there was an exceptionally high concentration of chipped stone
tools recovered from the right upper quadrant of field 1. This area is of considerable
archaeological interest because of the high concentration of artifacts which may indicate
an area of human activity/settlement which would benefit from further archaeological
investigation.
Figure 1: Distribution map showing concentrations of chipped stone tool finds (Burgess, C. (2009)
Flodden 500 Archaeology: interim report 2009).
RESEARCH STRATEGY AND METHODOLOGY
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1. Does the high concentration of lithics recovered from field 1 equate to surviving,
contemporary structural remains?
2. If structural features are present how do they relate to prehistoric land use and
settlement in the North Northumberland?
3. Does the archaeological evidence suggest mobile or sedentary settlement patterns
during the Neolithic and Bronze Age?
4. How can community archaeology projects contribute to our understanding of
prehistoric land use and settlement in North Northumberland?
RESEARCH CONTEXT
The purpose of this project is to establish if the high concentration of lithics recovered
from Field 1 equates to surviving contemporary structural features on the ground. If there
are structural features present, what are they, how do they relate to land use and
settlement patterns in North Northumberland, and how can this contribute to our
understanding of settlement patterns and land use in prehistory?
In recent years there has been a trend towards community archaeological projects; these
community initiatives collect a wide range of archaeological data which can often be
overlooked. This research project seeks to demonstrate the contribution that community
archaeology can make to archaeological research on a local level.
METHODOLOGY
The approach to this project is threefold involving survey, excavation and evaluation of
findings. An initial survey of the area will be conducted to contextualize the landscape.
Evaluation trenches will be sited and excavated over a seven day period by a team of
volunteers. All finds will be recorded and an excavation report compiled
The post excavation assessment and evaluation report will be prepared by Liz Young
with the support of Chris Burgess and any volunteers that wish to contribute. The report
will then be made available on the Flodden 500 website for download as they are
prepared. Copies will be lodged in Northumberland County Council, Historic
Environmental Record and at Berwick Museum.
The results of the excavation will be included in an MA thesis and submitted for
assessment in November 2011.
The location of the site is on arable land which shows no visible remains of prehistoric
activity, however, the high concentration of chipped stone tools coincides with what
appears to be a natural mound at the south edge of field 1 at the northern foot of Flodden
Hill. This location warrants further investigation to establish whether any contemporary
structural features remain.
The land is well drained and supports a variety of crops which suggests the land is
extremely fertile and may potentially be a suitable location for pastoral or agricultural
use. The site sits on Callerburn Farm and is owned by the Neil family.
EXCAVATION IN 2011
It is proposed that the initial phase of work would be to carry out a limited evaluation
excavation in Field 1 (see Figure 1). This is likely to take the form of 1-2 evaluation
trenches measuring 2m x 5m. These trenches would be sited across the areas showing the
highest concentration of chipped stone tools in the vicinity of the natural mound feature.
This will allow a thorough evaluation of any surviving archaeological remains or
structures.
These trenches are likely to be located in the following areas:
1. Right upper quadrant of field 1 located near the highest concentration of chipped
stone tools on the distribution map
2. In the right upper quadrant of field 1 extending across a small section of the
wooded area.
STAFF
Work will be carried out over a 7 day period (date to be advised) subject to crop
harvesting by volunteer groups including:
 NAG
 TILLVAS
 CCA
 BAS
The work will be managed and facilitated by Liz Young and supported by the County
archaeologist (Chris Burgess). Between 8 and 10 volunteers will attend each day from the
groups listed above.
FUNDING AND POST EXCAVATION
As an initial exploratory excavation this work is being carried out on an entirely
unfunded basis with the support of the volunteers involved. For this reason the project
approach is one of low scale evaluation which will minimize the impact on the site in
order to generate only the information necessary to provide information to support future
funded work.
The post excavation assessment and evaluation report will be prepared by Lizzy Young
with support from those volunteers who wish to contribute either by helping with
processing, or in the preparation of the report.
If as a result of the findings the need arises for radiocarbon dating funding will be sought
from English Heritage or other relevant bodies.
DISSEMINATION
Primary dissemination will be through the Flodden 500 website www.iFlodden.infoReports will be posted on the website for download as they are prepared. The report will
also be included as part of an MA thesis submitted to Newcastle University in November
2011. If the results warrant further dissemination a paper will be prepared for
Archaeology in Northumberland and Archaeologia Aeliana or Northern Archaeology