Farm and Forge : Late Iron Age/Romano-British farmsteads at Marsh Leys, Kempston, Bedfordshire

Between 1998 and 2001, Albion Archaeology (formerly Bedfordshire County Archaeology Service) carried out a series of archaeological investigations in advance of development at Marsh Leys on the outskirts of Bedford. Although the discovery of flint artefacts suggested limited earlier prehistoric activity, the first firm evidence for sustained use of the site was a ditched enclosure, which pre-dated the late Iron Age. The vast majority of the archaeological evidence was associated with two Romano-British farm sites c.400m apart. The farms varied in size over time, ranging from c.1ha to 3.3ha. Their layout, morphology, chronological development through three distinct phases, mixed farming economy and environment were similar, although subtle contrasts were identified.