| Summary : A Romano-British small town, defences visible as either slight earthworks or a soilmark. The 4th century settlement of Magiovinium occupies a spur jutting into the floodplain of the River Ouzel and is bisected by Watling St. No extensive modern excavations have ever been undertaken, and most finds have been made either on the surface or in service trenches. Foundations of buildings have been exposed on either side of Watling Street and a timber building was discovered in a trench 750 yds south-east of Fenny Stratford. Painted wall plaster, rough tesserae, tiles, pottery and coins have been found mainly in fields adjoining a house called Dropshort. The ploughed-down remains of the defences comprise a bank and ditch. A cemetery was situated outside the defences, and possibly the rampart followed the hedgeline where the adjoining fields are at different levels. The settlement was oval, measuring 350 metres north-west to south-east by 250 metres transversely. |
More information : (SP 88813380) Magiovinvm (site of) (1)
The site is situated about a quarter of a mile south east of Fenny Stratford. Foundations of buildings have been exposed on either side of Watling Street from SP 89113355 to SP 88833374 and a timber building was discovered in a post office trench 750 yds SE of Fenny Stratford (SP 88963364). Painted wall plaster, rough tesserae, tiles, pottery and coins have been found mainly in fields adjoining a house called Dropshort. (2-6)
The 4th C settlement of Magiovinium centred SP 889336 occupies a spur jutting into the floodplain of the River Ouzel and is bisected by Watling St (RR 1e). The ploughed-down remains of the defences comprise a bank and ditch, best preserved in the SE arc, where the bank is 0.2m high and the ditch 0.3m deep, but elsewhere they are reduced to a scarp or a soil mark. Its line can be traced from the Ouzel at SP 88813352 around the S and E sides to SP 89113367, at which point, all trace is destroyed by rig-and-furrow. However its course along the N side of the settlement can be fairly accurately conjectured along the summit of a natural scarp extending to Drophort Farm outbuildings at SP 88903377. Its W limit is uncertain, but presumably the cemetery at SP 88753377 (SP 83 SE 29) was situated outside the defences, and possibly the rampart followed the hedgeline at SP 88813371 where the adjoining fields are at different levels.
Thus the settlement was oval, measuring 350.0m NW-SE by 250.0m transversely.
Pengelly (a) saw "a wall about 10 ft wide" at SP 89113355 on the line of the rampart during trenching along Watling St. In the same trench traces of structures and 1st-4th century pottery were found from the bridge of the Ouzel at SP 88603390 to c SP 894333, indicating that the settlement had been more extensive before the 4th c. No extensive modern excavations have ever been undertaken, and most finds have been made either on the surface or in sewage trenches etc. The area of finds known to Pengelly, other local archaeologists and the owner of Dropshort Farm, Mrs F Unwin is indicated on OS 6" by a green band.
Surveyed at 1:2500.
Name 'MAGIOVINIVM' accepted for 4th. edition R.B.Map. (7)
Scheduled. For the designation record of this site please see The National Heritage List for England (8-9) |