Site and Post-Excavation data from multiple fieldwork investigations at 35 West St, Wilton / Wilton Autos, 41-43 West St, Wilton, Wiltshire 2007-2020
Wessex Archaeology, 2021. https://doi.org/10.5284/1084798. How to cite using this DOI
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- ADS Collection: 3909
- DOI:https://doi.org/10.5284/1084798
- How to cite using this DOI
Introduction
This multi-phase collection comprises multiple reports, site and finds photographs, cad site plans, finds spreadsheets and databases from multiple fieldwork investigations carried out between Nov 2007 and Jan 2008 prior to construction.
The excavation (WA project no. 60515) was carried out between 5th November 2007 and 11th January 2008. This excavation followed an evaluation of the site (60513) which demonstrated the presence of remains spanning the medieval and post-medieval periods. Earlier, related work (Evaluation 60510, Excavation 60511 and Watching Brief 60512) at 35 West Street had also revealed limited remains of this date.
Records relating to these phases of archaeological mitigation along with a subsequent Watching Brief (60516) and publication (60517) are also contained within this archive. These records comprise born digital photographs, site survey, site and post-ex analysis databases and related reporting. The site paper archive is held at Salisbury and South Wilts. Museum under the accession code 2018.100.
The Site has provided the first archaeological evidence for Early - Mid-Saxon settlement in Wilton previously indicated only from historical sources. The presence of a large sunken-featured building (SFB) reflects occupation in the valley bottom and suggests the presence of further structures in the vicinity. This may represent part of the early settlement of Ditchampton, the extent of which remains unknown, and two spearheads found during small-scale building work on the high ground to the north-west overlooking this area may indicate the presence of an associated cemetery. The SFB contained a large assemblage of loomweights and animal bone, but very little pottery. Charred plant remains were, however, relatively abundant and allow some understanding of the cereal economy of the period.
The Site lies just within the known extent of the Late Saxon town, defined to the north-west by the burh defences, and is adjacent to an important street, with a lower lying floodplain immediately to the north-west The Late Saxon / early medieval and medieval remains, largely comprising pits, span the 11th - 14th centuries and, in addition, there were several boundary ditches marking the limits to properties to the rear of structures fronting West Street. The pottery assemblage offers a valuable opportunity to explore the ceramic sequence from the 10th to 12th century through one of the largest assemblages of this date as yet (at the time of reporting) recovered from the Wilton/Salisbury environs.
Probably two properties fell within the excavated area at 41 - 43 West Street and, though there was little surviving structural evidence, the documentary research provides some details of the character of this area (if not the Site itself), as well as its occupiers, from the 13th century onwards. The medieval pits have produced evidence for the disposal of waste food and burnt cereals and the evidence generally fits the pattern emerging for the medieval period in urban and semi-urban centres across southern Britain at this time. The structural remains and cemetery revealed at the rear of the Site, combined with the earlier work at 35 West Street, indicate the presence of a small church with associated cemetery (of very limited extent) identified through documentary research as St Andrew's Church. The rediscovery of one of the 'lost' churches of Wilton represents a significant find. Following demolition, probably in the 16th century, the area occupied by the church, as well as the adjacent cemetery, continued to be used for burial, while the remainder of the site was used variously as a wood yard and garden, probably reflecting a post-medieval decline in status of this part of Wilton. The human remains are of considerable significance as there are few assemblages which can be securely dated to the 16th or 17th centuries, rendering this assemblage, from a 'semi-urban' churchyard of particular interest at both a local and regional level.
