A palynological investigation of archaeological materials from Burrough Hill, Leicestershire

The six samples studied yielded palynofloras dominated by Jurassic taxa. The most significant lithostratigraphical unit contributing to sample 1 is the Oxford Clay Formation of Callovian– Oxfordian age. By contrast, the principal element in samples 2–6 is the Lower Toarcian part of the Whitby Mudstone Formation (the Grey Shale and Mulgrave Shale members). Minor levels of Carboniferous and Quaternary/Holocene material were also recovered throughout. Certain samples also yielded rare Permian, Late Triassic and Early Cretaceous material. The glacial tills of Eastern England are typically rich in Jurassic and Carboniferous palynomorphs. This means that the clay samples analysed were originally collected from local tills. The non-Jurassic elements are too abundant and varied for them to have been reworked or otherwise introduced into the respective in situ Jurassic units. The fact that samples produced mixed Jurassic palynomorphs is entirely consistent with the till provenance hypothesis. Furthermore, the Jurassic units identified here are typically organic-rich, such as the Lower Toarcian Whitby Mudstone Formation, the Oxford Clay Formation (Callovian–Oxfordian) and the Kimmeridge Clay Formation (Kimmeridgian–Tithonian).