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<p>[QUOTE="robp, post: 4856067, member: 96746"]For what it's worth I'll try and add a little to the discussion as I spent the first 18 years of my life living less than a mile from the find spot.</p><p><br /></p><p>First of all, the exact location of the hoard is here. <a href="https://latitude.to/articles-by-country/gb/united-kingdom/8430/frome-hoard" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://latitude.to/articles-by-country/gb/united-kingdom/8430/frome-hoard" rel="nofollow">https://latitude.to/articles-by-country/gb/united-kingdom/8430/frome-hoard</a></p><p><br /></p><p>If you use Google maps it is possible to get a better overview of the area. <a href="https://www.google.com/maps/place/Frome/@51.2272457,-2.286348,16z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x487228d845a5c1a7:0x9c21be78d797965!8m2!3d51.230751!4d-2.320096" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.google.com/maps/place/Frome/@51.2272457,-2.286348,16z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x487228d845a5c1a7:0x9c21be78d797965!8m2!3d51.230751!4d-2.320096" rel="nofollow">https://www.google.com/maps/place/Frome/@51.2272457,-2.286348,16z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x487228d845a5c1a7:0x9c21be78d797965!8m2!3d51.230751!4d-2.320096</a></p><p><br /></p><p>Using these maps and the satellite view it is clear that there are springs everywhere. Having walked across the fields many times in the 1970s and got wet feet, I can confirm the land is very boggy at times. If you use the two maps, it is possible to locate the find spot and you will see that there is evidence of a watercourse very close to it. The findspot is just north of the power lines crossing top left to bottom right in the second field directly below the farmhouse at the end of the road coming in from the top.</p><p><br /></p><p>The comment in the papers linked to earlier that evidence of old settlements was found is what one would expect if you look at the area. Rodden church stands next to Rodden Farm, but otherwise in splendid isolation far removed from any old dwellings. Why? A church would be sited close to a built up area to serve the congregation, so we have to consider whether the area was previously a settlement which was abandoned. There are several dozen isolated churches in the UK where the associated village was abandoned in medieval times after the plague leaving just the church standing, and this would fit the argument. The nearest church in the centre of Frome (St. Johns) is well over a mile away, and close to this are houses dating to the 14th century, but there is nothing of any age within half a mile or more of Rodden. There is evidence of a site of worship going back over 800 years.</p><p><br /></p><p>The area is good undulating arable land with abundant water supplies and in my view ripe for habitation. Springs crop up all over the place, to the east from the base of the chalk strata which form Salisbury plain and outliers, to the west from the limestone hills of the Mendips. The weather is fairly reliably both wet and sunny at various times and the climate is mild.</p><p><br /></p><p>Frome has been settled since at least Saxon times when it was a royal manor and the location of a mint. Given the tendency for settlements to evolve over time, it would therefore not be surprising if this was preceded by earlier occupants. The whole area is covered in settlements dating from the iron age and earlier. Hill forts, strip lynchets from early agriculture are frequently seen on the slopes. Basically, there is nothing to argue against Roman settlement as both wood and stone are abundant and the area was settled prior to and after the Romans.</p><p><br /></p><p>One thing I noticed from the satellite view is the varying colours seen in the field to the east of the find spot. Maybe that was the evidence of an old settlement referred to.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="robp, post: 4856067, member: 96746"]For what it's worth I'll try and add a little to the discussion as I spent the first 18 years of my life living less than a mile from the find spot. First of all, the exact location of the hoard is here. [URL]https://latitude.to/articles-by-country/gb/united-kingdom/8430/frome-hoard[/URL] If you use Google maps it is possible to get a better overview of the area. [URL]https://www.google.com/maps/place/Frome/@51.2272457,-2.286348,16z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x487228d845a5c1a7:0x9c21be78d797965!8m2!3d51.230751!4d-2.320096[/URL] Using these maps and the satellite view it is clear that there are springs everywhere. Having walked across the fields many times in the 1970s and got wet feet, I can confirm the land is very boggy at times. If you use the two maps, it is possible to locate the find spot and you will see that there is evidence of a watercourse very close to it. The findspot is just north of the power lines crossing top left to bottom right in the second field directly below the farmhouse at the end of the road coming in from the top. The comment in the papers linked to earlier that evidence of old settlements was found is what one would expect if you look at the area. Rodden church stands next to Rodden Farm, but otherwise in splendid isolation far removed from any old dwellings. Why? A church would be sited close to a built up area to serve the congregation, so we have to consider whether the area was previously a settlement which was abandoned. There are several dozen isolated churches in the UK where the associated village was abandoned in medieval times after the plague leaving just the church standing, and this would fit the argument. The nearest church in the centre of Frome (St. Johns) is well over a mile away, and close to this are houses dating to the 14th century, but there is nothing of any age within half a mile or more of Rodden. There is evidence of a site of worship going back over 800 years. The area is good undulating arable land with abundant water supplies and in my view ripe for habitation. Springs crop up all over the place, to the east from the base of the chalk strata which form Salisbury plain and outliers, to the west from the limestone hills of the Mendips. The weather is fairly reliably both wet and sunny at various times and the climate is mild. Frome has been settled since at least Saxon times when it was a royal manor and the location of a mint. Given the tendency for settlements to evolve over time, it would therefore not be surprising if this was preceded by earlier occupants. The whole area is covered in settlements dating from the iron age and earlier. Hill forts, strip lynchets from early agriculture are frequently seen on the slopes. Basically, there is nothing to argue against Roman settlement as both wood and stone are abundant and the area was settled prior to and after the Romans. One thing I noticed from the satellite view is the varying colours seen in the field to the east of the find spot. Maybe that was the evidence of an old settlement referred to.[/QUOTE]
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