Monument record 14445 - Ridge and furrow earthworks in Shocklach

<1> Historic England & Archaeological Research Services, 2017, Cheshire National Mapping Programme and Lidar Mapping Project: Sampling the Peak Fringe, Cheshire Plain and Mersey Valley, 1607985 & 1608438 (Digital Archive). SCH8172.

Medieval / post medieval ridge and furrow ploughing in the parish of Church Shocklach is visible as earthworks centred at approximately SJ 440 499 on historic aerial photography and lidar imagery, and the majority appears to remain extant on the latest 2010-2013 vertical imagery.

Large areas of the ridge and furrow appear to be medieval in origin, part of the open field system, and including a number of broad banks which probably represent plough headlands. Much of this has continued in use into the post medieval period, with straightening and splitting of the broad ridges to create extra furrows. A small number of fields appear to consist of post medieval narrow ridge and furrow. The ridge and furrow is continuous throughout the eastern half of the parish, while to the west as it nears the River Dee and its floodplain, it becomes less common (2-4).

A large group of field boundaries centred at approximately SJ 443 493 to the north and east of Shocklach, possibly part of the medieval / post medieval field system, are visible as primarily earthwork ditches (though with at least one bank) on lidar imagery, and appear to remain extant on the latest 2010-2013 aerial photography. Many of the boundaries appear to define blocks of ridge and furrow ploughing (UID 1607985) and are likely contemporary.

<2> Ordnance Survey, Various, Ordnance Survey Aerial Photographs, OS/69432 V 0161 03-SEP-1969 (Aerial Photograph). SCH8310.

<3> Next Perspectives, 2010, Aerial Photography for Great Britain, Next Perspectives APGB Imagery (2010), SJ4449 11-OCT-2010 (Aerial Photograph). SCH8173.

<4> Environment Agency, 2003-2020, Environment Agency LiDAR Surveys, 19-22/04/2006 (Digital Archive). SCH7819.