Three trial-trenches were excavated by Colchester Archaeological Trust, in advance of propsed development, totalling 13.7m in length (4.8% sample). These showed that the southern two-thirds of the site had been truncated by post-medieval pits (defined in Trenches 2 and 3). On the northern edge of the site, a Roman soil layer survived. This contained pits and other Roman features but no burials, although a few pieces of human bone were found in T2 (presumably from a disturbed burial or burials). There was a large quantity of Roman building debris from this site – brick, roof-tile and tesserae. Spot-dating of the finds would suggest Roman activity of the 2nd to 3rd centuries. Roman depsoits were defined at c.1m in depth. <1> There were loose human bones from one of the recent pits in T2. Presumably there were Roman burials on the site, but they have been disturbed or destroyed by pit-digging in recent centuries. There was a large quantity of Roman building debris from the site – brick, roof tile and tesserae. The source of this debris must have been a Roman structure near to or perhaps on the site.