Ely Leisure Village, Downham Road, Ely. An Archaeological Excavation Interim Report

Archaeological investigations were undertaken by the Cambridge Archaeological Unit (CAU) at the Ely Leisure Village site situated on Downham Road, Ely (Figure 1). The work was carried out over the course of four months between 18th May 2016 and early September 2016 and was a continuation of excavations undertaken previously by the CAU at this site (site code DRE15 - see Wright 2016). The investigation area comprised excavations in two almost contiguous areas (Area 3 and Area 4), separated by a small area of undergrowth containing a large drainage ditch which is currently unexcavated. Further archaeological investigations will be carried out during construction on this and other small areas as yet unexcavated. For the purposes of this interim report, Area 3 and Area 4 will be considered as one plot centred at TL 53132 81323 (see Figure 2). An area totalling 2.26ha was machine stripped revealing archaeological remains ranging in date from the Bronze Age through to the Post-Medieval period and dominated by enclosure systems dating to the Middle Saxon period