Post-Medieval Archaeol 27

Data from a survey of all medieval and post-medieval pottery assemblages in Wales enable a preliminary outline of the organisation of the post-medieval pottery industry in Wales to be put forward. Distribution maps chart the growth and decline of regional industries, and allow the relative importance of imports from England and the continent to be assessed. Evidence for continuing regionalism and conservatism is outlined, and suggestions for further research areas are presented.

Upper levels of deposition associated with Witney manor house have yielded dense aggregations of bones which were mainly of horses and dogs. Probably these animals were butchered for their meat and skins. Possibly beginning in the medieval period, the practice reached a peak during the eighteenth century as occupation of the ruinous large houses ceased. Archaeological and historical arguments point to the bones having little connection with normal household consumption of human food and show that horse meat was fed to hunting dogs at kennels kept by wealthy landowners and later to pets of people of various social status.

Research excavations were undertaken over three seasons as part of a larger project to test the application of archaeology to the restoration of historic gardens. This report deals with the results of the excavations. At least four main phases of garden design were discovered, overlying evidence for an earlier medieval demesne establishment. The earliest gardens probably dated from the sixteenth or early-seventeenth century, and comprised a design created by plant beds laid out amongst sand and gravel surfaces. This was succeeded by a parterre garden similar to that shown on a print of 1762, but with some notable differences. Plans to create a much enlarged garden by Sir John Bridgeman II (1667--1747) in the 1730s and 1740s appear to have been left unfinished on his death (but see also 96/713). There then followed a period of partial abandonment, before renewed interest from c 1818 led to the creation of an elaborate, early formal revivalist garden using the surviving skeleton of Bridgeman's unfinished layout. At some time before 1868, a new parterre was laid out in the Best Garden. This latest design survived almost completely intact beneath later soil dumping. All the recovered phases survived remarkably well for the most part, because the hill-slope site enabled the height of the terraces to be constantly increased, thus preserving earlier levels beneath soil dumps. The excavated evidence allowed previous ideas about the site's development to be considerably revised.Specialist reports include, `Stone' (161--3), and `Brick and tile' (164--6) by Martin Locock, `Pottery' (166--79) and `Clay pipes' (179--80) by C K Currie, `Glass' (180--1), `Metalwork' (182--3), `Mortar and slag' (184) and `Animal bone and shell' (185--7) all by Martin Locock, `Macro-botanical remains' by Claire de Rouffignac (187--90), and finally `Pollen analysis' by F M Chambers (191--4). Au&IH

Reports work on ecclesiastical buildings, military and naval earthworks and structures, wrecks, towns and corporate buildings, villages, manors, country houses and associated works, farms and small domestic buildings, industry, communications, sports and amusements.