Anglo-Scandinavian, Medieval and Post- Medieval Urban Occupation at 41-49 Walmgate, York, Uk
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YORK ARCHAEOLOGICAL TRUST ANGLO-SCANDINAVIAN, MEDIEVAL AND POST- MEDIEVAL URBAN OCCUPATION AT 41-49 WALMGATE, YORK, UK Principal author Neil Macnab WEB PUBLICATION Report Number AYW1 2003 YORK ARCHAEOLOGICAL TRUST York Archaeological Trust undertakes a wide range of urban and rural archaeological consultancies, surveys, evaluations, assessments and excavations for commercial, academic and charitable clients. We manage projects, provide professional advice and fieldwork to ensure a high quality, cost effective archaeological and heritage service. Our staff have a considerable depth and variety of professional experience and an international reputation for research, development and maximising the public, educational and commercial benefits of archaeology. Based in York, Sheffield, Nottingham and Glasgow the Trust’s services are available throughout Britain and beyond. York Archaeological Trust, Cuthbert Morrell House, 47 Aldwark, York YO1 7BX Phone: +44 (0)1904 663000 Fax: +44 (0)1904 663024 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.yorkarchaeology.co.uk © 2018 York Archaeological Trust for Excavation and Research Limited Registered Office: 47 Aldwark, York YO1 7BX A Company Limited by Guarantee. Registered in England No. 1430801 A registered Charity in England & Wales (No. 509060) and Scotland (No. SCO42846) York Archaeological Trust i CONTENTS ABOUT THIS PDF ........................................................................................................................ II 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................... 3 2 ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL BACKGROUND.............................................. 7 3 THE EXCAVATION............................................................................................................. 10 3.1 Phase 1: 10th century ....................................................................................................... 10 3.2 Phase 2: late 10th to early 11th century .......................................................................... 13 3.3 Phase 3: early to mid-11th century ................................................................................. 15 3.4 Phase 4: mid to late 11th century .................................................................................... 18 3.5 Phase 5: 12th century ....................................................................................................... 22 3.6 Phase 6: Introduction ....................................................................................................... 27 3.7 Phase 7: early to mid-14th century ................................................................................. 35 3.8 Phase 8: mid to late 14th century .................................................................................... 41 3.9 Phase 9: Introduction ....................................................................................................... 48 3.10 Phases 10, 11, 12 and 13 ............................................................................................... 90 4 THE ARTEFACT ASSEMBLAGES AND ENVIRONMENTAL EVIDENCE ................. 101 4.1 Conservation ................................................................................................................... 101 4.2 Metalworking ................................................................................................................... 112 4.3 Artefacts ........................................................................................................................... 130 4.4 Pottery .............................................................................................................................. 161 4.5 Building materials ........................................................................................................... 168 4.6 Environmental Evidence ................................................................................................ 190 5 DISCUSSION .................................................................................................................... 204 5.1 Discussion and Conclusions part 1 .............................................................................. 204 5.2 Discussion and Conclusions part 2: Metalworking .................................................... 210 BIBLIOGRAPHY ....................................................................................................................... 216 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................ 224 41-49 Walmgate, York York Archaeological Trust Web Report AYW 1 York Archaeological Trust ii ABOUT THIS PDF In 2000 York Archaeological Trust undertook excavations at 41-49 Walmgate, York. The excavations uncovered remains of Anglo-Scandinavian to post-medieval date. This Pdf represents a copy of a report which was designed as an interactive web report, originally hosted on York Archaeological Trust’s website. Due to changes in the design of this website the original interactive report is no longer available. This Pdf was produced to ensure that the information held in the original report remained widely available. As the original report was intended for web-viewing the design did not follow conventional publication formats, there were therefore some problems when converting the web information into this Pdf. The Harris matrices for the various phases were impossible to reproduce at a legible scale. Some of the images, which were perfectly clear when viewed on the web, became slightly blurred when transferred into Pdf format. There were no Figure or Plate numbers originally, as the images in question were simply embedded in the web-text at the relevant point; the images have therefore been placed as close to their original position as possible within the Pdf. Many images appeared several times within the original web text, for examples some artefacts were shown in the stratigraphic text relating to the contexts from which they were recovered, in the conservation report and in the artefact report; such images are reproduced several times here to maintain the overall look of the original web report. This Pdf follows the layout of the original web report as far as possible, though a more formal structure had to be imposed, with headings and sub headings etc. Readers should bear these limitations in mind while reading the report. The conversion of the original IADB report into a Pdf file was undertaken by J. M. McComish in July 2018. 41-49 Walmgate, York York Archaeological Trust Web Report AYW 1 York Archaeological Trust 3 The Walmgate area has long been known as the industrial hub of medieval York, sandwiched between the medieval defences and the River Foss. The street of Walmgate itself was the major thoroughfare through the area during the medieval period linking to routes south of York. Between August and October 2000 York Archaeological Trust had the opportunity to examine deposits at 41–49 Walmgate, funded by Evans Homes. The significant archaeological discoveries made spanned 1000 critical years of the city's development, from the 10th to the 20th century. The evidence recovered has enabled a fascinating picture to be built up of the sequence of buildings which stood on the site, how they were constructed, who lived and worked in them, and what these inhabitants ate. The excavations were invaluable for developing our understanding of this part of York and allow comparison to be made with discoveries elsewhere in the city and beyond. 1 INTRODUCTION The archaeological excavation at Walmgate followed an evaluation of the site by York Archaeological Trust in 1990 (Lilley unpublished) and a series of exploratory test pits intended to examine the foundations of surrounding buildings in May 2000 (Johnson unpublished). The site had also featured in the Time Team millennium visit to York in September 1999 when structures of the Viking Age were uncovered (Ottaway 1999). View of the site before excavation, looking north-west 41-49 Walmgate, York York Archaeological Trust Web Report AYW 1 York Archaeological Trust 4 Site Location The excavation was undertaken by a team of skilled field archaeologists working to a specification prepared by John Oxley, Principal Archaeologist for the City of York Council. A planning condition required the archaeological excavation of approximately 250 square metres of the site close to the Walmgate street front prior to the construction of flats by Evans of Leeds. Excavation proceeded to a specified level of 11.10m Above Ordnance Datum since this was the depth to which disturbance during development was expected. Site excavation team 41-49 Walmgate, York York Archaeological Trust Web Report AYW 1 York Archaeological Trust 5 41–49 Walmgate lies on the south side of the street of Walmgate which itself is in the south- eastern quarter of the medieval walled city. The excavation strategy was based on a targeted approach focused on the well-preserved archaeological deposits discovered on the Walmgate street frontage during evaluation. Deposits that were to be disturbed by the development proposals were excavated in their entirety. The excavation incorporated approximately 15.5m of the Walmgate street frontage and stretched back approximately 16.5m from it. This area was excavated to a maximum depth limit of 11.10m Above Ordnance Datum (which took in up to 1m of archaeological deposits). A strip along the frontage