Site record MDR23804 - Elongated Mound, Possibly a Feature of Mining Activity, West of Asher Lane, Pentrich

Elongated mound, possibly a feature of mining activity, west of Asher Lane, Pentrich, of uncertain or possible post medieval date. Currently available LiDAR imagery (National Library of Scotland) shows a sub-rectangular, elongated mound, oriented roughly east - west, c30m long and c13m wide. There is a very slight impression of a ditch on its southern edge, and a north-south depression in its centre. Current air photos (Google maps) show that the mound is in a ploughed field, and has a tree growing in its western part, and a small rectangular structure on its eastern part. A site visit carried out in September 2023, to investigate the possibility that the mound was a long barrow. The feature was recorded as follows: '…No evidence was found to support the mound being a long barrow as initially suspected. No flint or pre-19th century pottery was found in the vicinity. The mound appears be composed of two separate tips of material which are consistent with ironstone mining spoil, containing shales and numerous nodules of ironstone. There are other mounds nearby on historic mapping which also look mining-related, all of which are close to the line of a former mineral tramway (MDR9621) constructed from 1805, and these small-scale mining operations may have tapped into the tramway for transport. The mound is certainly of some age as evidenced by the mature oak growing on it which appears to be at least 200 years old. The geology of the site is towards the base of the Middle Coal Measures, known to be associated with ironstone deposits in Derbyshire, and the Pentrich area was a centre for ironstone and coal extraction which led to the formation of the Butterley Company in 1790, only 1km from this site.' (1) Please see linked photos.