Table of Contents

List of Figures
List of Tables
Abstract
1. Introduction
Location and Setting
Methods
Excavation Results: Structural Synopsis
2. Fish Weirs
Fish Weir II (Late 7th-8th Century AD)
HL 5 Fish Weir Complex (9th-10th century AD)
V-Shaped Fish Weir (Lines E and F)
Post Alignment (Line D)
Eel Trap Structure (Lines A-C and Panel 211)
Brushwood
Eel Basket SF23
Pulse Stick Head SF22
Wooden Bowl Fragment SF25
Hurdle Structure I (Panels 213, 240, 260 and 261)
Panel 240
Wooden Maul/Chopping Block SF24
Hurdle Structure II (Panel 22 and Timbers Below)
Wooden Bowl Fragment SF29
Fish Weir I (Mid 11th-Mid 12th Century AD)
Discussion of Fish Weirs
3. Settlement (HL 4)
Bronze Age Roundhouse
Anglo-Saxon Structures
Early Medieval Ditch
Discussion of Settlement Sites
4. The Stone Weir HL12 (Early 12th Century)
Introduction
Pile Posts
Brushwood and Hurdle Crib
Stone Infill
V-Shaped Funnel
Scour Prevention Platform
The Timber Used in HL12
Discussion of the Timbers
Fishing from the Weir
Eel Baskets
Brushwood Bundles
Anchor Stones
Mill Stones/Millstone Roughouts
Mill Paddles
Leather Artefacts (Nicholas J. Cooper)
Tree-Ring Dating of HL12 (Robert Howard)
Function of HL12
5. Jetty Structures (HL6, 8, 9, 10, 11 & 13)
Site HL6
Site HL8
Site HL9
Site HL10
Site HL11
Site HL13
Eastern Extension Phase 5 Structure
Discussion of Jetty Structures
6. Palaeochannels
Site HL1
Site HL3
Site HL7
Site HL14
HL15: Channel System
7. Discussion and Conclusions
The Hedge Weir Fishery
The Water Mill Fishery
Cribs and Anchor Stones: A Change in Fishing Methods?
Locating and Identifying the Fishery
The Wider Context of the Fishery
Conclusions
Bibliography
Appendix I. Mill Paddles (Matthew Beamish)
Similarity of Paddles
Dating
Type 1a (Timbers 223, 268, 705)
Stave and Stave Fixings
Slots for Stabilising Struts
Type 1b (Timbers 262, 641)
Stave
Fixings
Slots for Stabilising Struts
The Type 1 Slots for Stabilising Struts
Type 2 (Timber 640)
Type 3 (Paddle 671)
Appendix II. Pottery and Ceramic Building Material
The Prehistoric Pottery (Patrick Marsden)
The Roman Pottery (Patrick Marsden)
Catalogue of medieval and post-medieval pottery (Deborah Sawday)
The Early Anglo-Saxon Pottery (Nicholas J Cooper)
Catalogue of ceramic building materials
Catalogue of fi red/burnt clay materials
Appendix III. Animal Bones (Jennifer Browning)
Results and Discussion
Appendix IV. Analysis of Waterlogged Wood and Plant Macrofossils from the Anglo-Saxon and Medieval Fish Weirs
Part I: Wood Analysis of the Fish Weirs and Eel Basket (Anita Radini)
Material and Methods
Wood Analysed for this Report
Identification and Nomenclature
Annual Ring Counts and Analysis
Recording
Results of the Analysis and Discussion
Preservation of the Wood
General Composition of the Assemblage
Wattle Panels and Brush Wood
Seasonality
Evidence of Coppicing
Brief Comparison with Similar Structures
Part II: The Environmental Samples (Anita Radini with Angela Monckton)
Materials and Methods
Results and Discussion
Fish Bones
Plant Remains
Conclusions

About the Author

Lynden Cooper and Susan Ripper have worked in commercial archaeology since the late 1980s, mostly directing urban and rural sites in Leicestershire. They co-directed work for the Hemington Bridges project and the alluvial archaeology featured in this volume. Latterly, Lynden has researched Upper Palaeolithic and Mesolithic sites in the region. Susan is now a freelance archaeologist and archaeological illustrator, and specialises in recording timber technology.

Reviews

'This report is short, accessible and well-illustrated.' Paul Stamper, Medieval Archaeology, 62.1, 2018

'This short but excellent report makes the latest contribution to the emerging picture of intensive early and high medieval activity along the middle Trent.University of Leicester Archaeological Services (ULAS) should again be congratulated on an exemplary presentation of material that must have been challenging to excavate and interpret.' John Blair, Medieval Settlement Research, Vol 33. Nov 2018

'The British Archaeological Reports series is an excellent way of enabling readers to explore archaeological results without having to devour the full, formal and technical reports of excavations.This report.offers a rare opportunity to glimpse how medieval people made the most of natural resources.Although there are many documentary references to fisheries, this survival of archaeological remains and evidence for relationships with bridges, mills and the riverine landscape of the Trent is exceptional, and potentially of interest to people who fish as well as archaeologists.' Yolanda Courtney, Leicestershire Historian 2018

'This report is important as it presents a comprehensive record of the excavation and analysis of these wetland sites with their associated remarkably well-preserved structures and material culture. . Anyone interested in the history/archaeology/material culture of fishing will want this book!' Professor Stephen Rippon, University of Exeter

'The exploitation of rivers in the Middle Ages remains a rather incompletely understood subject, both from an historical and also archaeological point of view. The work at Hemington Quarry is beginning to emerge as extraordinarily important in this field.' Dr Mark Gardiner, University of Lincoln

'The data is excellent, with top class recording of genuinely amazing archaeological materials. . [This work] is very significant for anyone interested in medieval archaeology and economy, in riverine or wetland archaeology, and in the archaeology of fishweirs.' Professor Aidan O'Sullivan, University College Dublin

'The waterlogged wood material is exceptionally well preserved. It has also been carefully recorded and the evidence is well presented. . Overall it is an important contribution to our knowledge of medieval fishing and river management.' Peer Reviewer