Archaeological watching briefs on a new lake and counterwall trench at Abbotts Hall Farm, Great Wigborough, Essex: September 2001

Wooden stuctures sealed by thick clay deposits were recorded during watching briefs on machine excavations for a new freshwater lake and a counterwall trench at this coastal site, formerly Abbotts Hall Farm, Great Wigborough, Essex. The principal feature consisted of two east-west-orientated rows of posts, approximately 3m apart, stretching across part of a former tidal creek. Radiocarbon dating of a wood sample indicated a date of AD 920 ( 50 years at the one sigma level of confidence. Possible functions include a fishtrap or jetty, but observation was too fragmentary to permit a satisfactory interpretation of the structure.