Pieces of Oxfordshire town's history uncovered ahead of car park improvement works
Vale of White Horse District Council carried out work to Cattle Market Car Park, including installing a rain garden to help mitigate flooding. In advance of the works, ADAS archaeologists investigated the site to understand the likely impact of the proposed project.
What was discovered?
In early 2025, ADAS archaeologists were present during the groundworks and uncovered two separate deep soil deposits, layered one on top of the other, which were immediately sealed below the car park surface.
Among the finds discovered in the upper layer were a large quantity of Romano-British pottery, including a fragment of Samian ware, a high-quality glossy red Roman tableware pottery, manufactured in southern Gaul (France).
Other finds included animal bone from cattle, sheep and even a fallow deer, oyster shell, medieval and post-medieval pottery and glass, and a fragment of a 17th century clay smoking pipe.
The lower layer produced mostly Roman pottery and a 4th century coin with a small quantity of later pottery and medieval roofing tiles.
Councillor Robert Clegg, Vale of White Horse District Council Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Environmental Services and Waste, said: “Not only have we been able to make improvements to Cattle Market Car Park that should help with flooding issues but, thanks to the diligence of our officers, it also meant we could discover more of the rich history of Abingdon.”