Monument record MDR13535 - Building platform, Kedleston Park

A building platform situated on top of the north bank of the cutting through which the drive to Kedleston Hall passes. It overlies an area of ridge and furrow ploughing [SMR 21931]. The platform appears as a level area of grass surrounded on all four sides by a slight gully or depression. It's longest axis is orientated north-south. Along its western and northern edges, the platform is skirted by a low earth bank, with a distinct gully on the outside edge. Additional banks and ditches can be seen, all of which presumably represent wall foundations that survive below the ground surface. During a site visit in 1989, probing with a surveyor's arrow produced a solid response at a depth of 15-20 centimetres. It is not certain whether the earthworks represent the site of one of the houses within the former village [SMR 21902]; possibly not, as it lies too far away from the present house. It may well be 17th centruy or earlier in origin, and if so it represents an important pre-emparkment feature that should not be disturbed. (1)