The Hidden Heritage of High Lodge

Project Activities Q1 2018

Below are selected images from project activities run during Q1 2018 as part of the history & heritage of the High Lodge site project by the Friends of Thetford Forest (FoTF).

Saturday 13 January - Exploring Earthworks at High Lodge

The Horseshoe Pit
Horseshoe Pit
Using GPS to plot the position of the bank
Using GPS to help plot the circular bank and ditch earthwork.
Learning to use a dumpy level
Learning how to use the dumpy level to record the profile of the earthwork.
Reading the dumpy level
Reading the results from the dumpy level.

Saturday 20 January 2018 - Discovering the Landscape of Warrening

Listeneing to a presentation
Presentation 'The Warrens of Breckland'.
Walking through High Lodge to view the banks
Walking to view the banks of Downham Warren
Discussing the banks
Discussing the function of these banks.
The team at Mildehall Warren lodge
At Mildenhall Warren Lodge.

Friday 26 January 2018 - Discovering Burial Mounds

The group learn about mounds in the landscape
David Robertson explaining the distribution of the mounds in the landscape.
The Pilgrim Cross
Trekking through the Forest to Bunker's Hill Burial Mound.
Trekking through the Forest
Pausing to view the medieval cross on the pilgrims' route to Walsingham.
Mount Ephraim.
On top of the Round Barrow known as Mount Ephraim.

Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 January 2018 - Geophysics to locate the possible site of the High Lodge farmstead and the warren lodge of Downham Warren.

Plotting the location of building material.
Plotting the location of significant scatters of building material.
Setting ut the survey grid
Learning how to set out the grid for systematic surveying.
Using resistivity equipment.
Receiving instruction in how to use the Resistivity equipment.
Using the magnetometer
Using the Magnetometer to record magnetic anomalies below the surface which might indicate foundations.

Saturday 10, Sunday 11 and Saturday 17, Sunday 18 February - Archaeological Investigation to locate the site of the medieval warren lodge of Downham Warren.

Digging a test pit
The first test pit is dug, using the geophysics results as a location guide.
Seiving the spoil
Sieving the extracted soil for artefacts.
Evidence of the farmhouse.
Very quickly, removal of the surface vegetation exposed evidence of the farmhouse.
Recording the foundations
Volunteers recording the exposed foundations with the help of SACIC.

18 March 2018 - Conservation work on the SPA habitat

A cold morning briefing
Gathering for the briefing on a bitterly cold morning.
Creating an open area
Removing self-seeded pine saplings and birch scrub to create open areas.
This will be an open glade
This area is adjacent to the heritage trail and the work will provide open glades for plants to flourish.
Food plants will grow for butterflies
Butterflies and moths will benefit too, as food plants should grow more freely.

30 March 2018 - Condition Monitoring of Earthwork Sites

Assessing the line of the warren bank
The first site visit on the training exercise, assessing the line of the warren bank.
Investigtiong the vegetaion cover
Deciding on the type and extent of the vegetation cover on the warren bank.