Historic Building Recording of Prudhoe Hospital
Addyman Archaeology, Simpson & Brown, 2017. https://doi.org/10.5284/1042739. How to cite using this DOI
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- ADS Collection: 2476
- DOI:https://doi.org/10.5284/1042739
- How to cite using this DOI
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Building 27: The Mortuary
The mortuary is located in the centre of the site slightly apart from the other buildings and is the smallest of the non-domestic buildings on the site. It has a simple rectangular plan with a walled courtyard at the west end with a small outbuilding in the south west corner. It is assumed that the courtyard was to allow ambulances and undertakers vehicles to deliver and collect the bodies discreetly. There was no access into the courtyard or shed.
The mortuary building, courtyard and shed were all constructed from buff coloured rough surfaced brick laid in stretcher bond. The mortuary roof had a very shallow pitch and was felted. All cills and lintels were concrete and the area below the windows on the long south elevation was finished with cream cement harl, whilst on the north side the whole elevation was brick. All the windows were small and located high in the wall directly below the gutter.
The main room contains drains within the floor, which is tiled with large grey stone or stone effect tiles. On the right is a small sink attached to the wall with a recess above. The walls are tiled to just below shoulder height with square ceramic tiles, and painted above. It is thought that this area was used for post mortem examinations or to prepare the bodies.
The second main room of the building contains a large metal fridge with runners to hold metal trays on which the bodies were stored. In the north east corner of the room a set of double doors provide access to the courtyard. In the north-west corner of the room a track runs along the ceiling with curtain hooks still attached. This would allow this part of the room to be curtained off. There are doors giving access to the outside and the window in the north wall has decorative glazing. This would suggest that this area was used as a place where family members could view the body without passing through the more clinical room to the south.
