The eleven seasons of excavations at Marcham (aka Frilford) resulted in a nationally important collection of structures and material culture. A series of unusual Iron Age enclosures are overlain by a stone-built Romano-British temple complex including a remarkably well-preserved arena (theatre/amphitheatre hybrid) together with several shrines. Material culture included c. 250,000 sherds of pottery, c. 22,000 pieces of animal bone, over 2,500 Romano-British coins and over sixty copper-alloy brooches. The site records comprise information on thousands of contexts and c. 4,500 excavation photographs.
Marcham has a long span of use starting with a ditched enclosure in the Middle Bronze Age which was replaced by a range of Iron Age features including enclosures, pits and burials. A major theme is the continuity of this place as a sacred site which saw the Iron Age features being replaced by a Romano-British temple with an associated arena, shrines and other features.
The site will be published electronically giving access to all data files and a large number of reports which should enable a good understanding of the site and its development through time as well as the opportunity for the data to be re-used and incorporated into new research.
