Iron Age Fen-Edge Settlement at Black Horse Farm, Sawtry, Cambridgeshire

Black Horse Farm is situated on the Cambridgeshire fen-edge. During the Iron Age and early Romano-British period it occupied a low promontory reaching out into the surrounding wetland. This volume describes the archaeological excavation of the site and the Iron Age settlement and Romano-British activity that was recorded there. The wetland of the fen would have been a prominent part of everyday life at Black Horse Farm and the book examines the way in which the site's inhabitants utilised and exploited it. Fluctuations between dry and damp conditions were also a prominent aspect of life at this marginal location and the later sections examine how the population responded to these conditions. The book examines themes including the organisation of space within the roundhouse, the role of ditches and banks as flood defences versus their social and defensive function, and offers alternative interpretations for some commonly observed features at contemporary sites. With contributions by Beta Analytic Inc., Jane Cowgill, Nina Crummy, Julia E. Cussans, Val Fryer, Andrew Peachey, Ruth Pelling, Carina Phillips, Rob Scaife and Maisie Taylor Illustrations by Kathren Henry, Charlotte Davies and Caroline George