| Abstract: |
Archaeological monitoring of works to replace lengths of cast lead pipe, installed in the 1880s, with modern plastic pipe, linking stretches of domestic and commercial water supply to the water main. The works were scheduled to be carried out along Eastgate, Flemingate and Keldgate in the centre of Beverley, within the nucleus of the medieval town and in close proximity to the scheduled monuments of Hall Garth (HE 1008122) and Blackfriars (HE 1003598) as well as a number of Grade I and II listed buildings including Beverley Minster (HE 1084028). Groundworks along Keldgate had the potential to expose remains of Keldgate Bar and the town defensive ditch, Bar Dike, as well as archaeology relating to Beverley Minster and its grounds. Previous excavations along Keldgate and Flemingate have also revealed remains relating to medieval and post medieval industry, particularly associated with tanning (Tibbles 2001). The route of Eastgate, running through the scheduled area relating to Blackfriars, meant that there was a possibility of encountering medieval remnants of the Friary or indeed human remains from the associated burial ground.
Eight pits were excavated along Eastgate, ranging in size from 0.6m x 0.6m to 3.0m x 0.7m with depths varying from 0.6m to 1.0m. The natural chalk was encountered at a depth of 1.0m. The pits were dug into the original cuts made for the lead pipes in the 19th century and as a result the fills encountered comprised redeposited chalk, sandy gravel and sandy silt.
Eighteen pits were excavated along the footpath and road of Flemingate, ranging from 0.8m x 0.7m x 0.8m deep in the footpath to 1.5m x 1.0m x 1.3m deep in the road. The pits were again dug into the original cuts made for the lead pipework and contained a similar mixture of redeposited chalk, sandy gravel and sandy silt. There was evidence of recent disturbance of the fill material relating to modern service upgrades.
Twelve pits were excavated along Keldgate, all approximately 1.4m x 3.0m with depths ranging from 1.3m to 2.0m. In addition to the redeposited material within the 19th-century pipe trenches (chalk, sandy gravel and sandy silt), some of the trenched contained modern ‘type 1’ fill relating to previous repairs to the lead water main. No in situ archaeological remains were revealed, with the artefact assemblage comprising of redeposited fragments of CBM (including hand made bricks), blue and white transfer printed pottery, medieval green glazed pottery, clay pipe stems, 20th-century glass, as well as fragments of animal bone and osyter shells. None of the assemblage was retained.
Outside number 13 Flemingate, within the backfill of the pipe trench, was a large fragment of sandstone masonry, located at a depth of 0.2m and lying above the lead water pipe. It was roughly triangular in shape; its faces measured 0.22m, 0.43m and 0.38m with a height of 0.3m. The shortest face was finely worked, flat with a vertical groove and rolled corner. Although unstratified it is likely that this masonry fragment was medieval, possibly associated with the nearby Minster or friary to the west. Due to its unstratified nature it was photographed and placed back in the excavation. |
