Palaeoecology Research Services Technical report: Biological remains from excavations at the former D. C. Cook site, off Lawrence Street, York (site code: YORYM 2001.9444) PRS 2004/04 Palaeoecology Research Services PRS 2004/04 Technical report: Biological remains from excavations at the former D. C. Cook site, off Lawrence Street, York (site code: YORYM 2001.9444) by Harry Kenward, Allan Hall, Deborah Jaques, Kathryn Johnson and John Carrott Summary Archaeological excavations were carried out by York Archaeological Trust at the former D. C. Cook site, off Lawrence Street, York, in May 2001 and February 2003. Plant and invertebrate remains were investigated from three deposits considered worthy of further examination following an assessment. One, from a feature interpreted as a 10th century oven or kiln, yielded modest concentrations of charred cereal grains (mainly barley and oats) showing evidence of sprouting—and probably representing material burnt during drying of grain in the malting process. Two later, medieval, deposits rich in remains preserved by anoxic ‘waterlogging’ were also studied. They came from features interpreted as a barrel well and a ditch. Both gave abundant evidence for natural, semi-natural and artificial habitats in the vicinity, but with some additional evidence of plant food waste (in the ditch). In some respects the assemblage from the ditchfill seemed more typical of a well fill, whilst the well fill was rich in aquatic invertebrates as would be expected from a ditch deposit. Altogether, these remains offered a rare opportunity to examine the environment (and aspects of the economy) of the inhabitants of an area of the city of York well beyond the city walls. Though too small for detailed analysis, the bone assemblages have been recorded to provide a basic archive for the purposes of possible use for comparanda and synthetic projects. KEYWORDS: FORMER D. C. COOK SITE; LAWRENCE STREET, YORK; TECHNICAL REPORT; ?10TH CENTURY; MEDIEVAL; CHARRED PLANT REMAINS; PLANT REMAINS; INVERTEBRATE REMAINS; VERTEBRATE REMAINS; MALTING Contact address for authors: Prepared for: Palaeoecology Research Services York Archaeological Trust Unit 8 Cromwell House Dabble Duck Industrial Estate 13 Ogleforth Shildon York YO1 7FG County Durham DL4 2RA 26 January 2004 Palaeoecology Research Services 2004/04 Technical report: D. C. Cook, York Technical report: Biological remains from excavations at the former D. C. Cook site, off Lawrence Street, York (site code: YORYM 2001.9444) Introduction data, are presented as the Appendix to this report. Archaeological excavations were carried out by York Archaeological Trust at the former D. C. Cook site, off Lawrence Street, York (SE Methods 6157 5126 and SE 6158 5125), in May 2001 and February 2003. Subsamples from the three samples identified as justifying further analysis were processed Plant and animal remains from excavations at according to the methods of Kenward et al. this site were investigated as part of an initial (1980), using paraffin flotation in the two evaluation of the material collected in 2001 cases where uncharred insect material was (Hall et al. 2001) with assessment of material known to be present and with the use of a collected during the intervention in 2003 (Hall ‘washover’ for the charred material in the et al. 2003). The first exercise, in which five third sample. Recording of plant remains was sediment samples and a small collection of semi-quantitative, using a four-point scale of vertebrate remains was studied, concluded: ‘It abundance from 1 (one or a few specimens or is recommended that no further work is a very rare component of the deposit) to 4 carried out either on these samples or those (abundant remains or a large component of the from the evaluation which were not examined deposit), these being related as far as possible bioarchaeologically. The animal bones do not to the size of the subsample, not the size of the warrant further examination. Further sieved material. Records of plant taxa and excavation at this site seems unlikely to yield other components of the three samples were valuable material, though the possibility of entered directly into a PC using Paradox moderate or high concentrations of charred software, along with notes about the material. remains and the recovery of a small vertebrate Some unusual or problematic specimens were assemblage should be allowed for.’ In the retained but no systematic recovery of remains event, a subsequent phase of excavation was attempted during scanning. yielded some well preserved material—both charred plant remains and uncharred Insects were identified by comparison with (‘waterlogged’) plant and invertebrate modern reference material and using the macrofossils, with samples from three standard works. Adult beetles and bugs, other contexts being identified as worthy of further than aphids and scale insects, were recorded examination, providing useful interpretative fully quantitatively and a minimum number of evidence for the contexts concerned as well as individuals estimated on the basis of the rare examples of well preserved biological fragments present. Numbers of Aleocharinae remains from an area of York for which such spp. were difficult to estimate and the division evidence has so far proved very sparse. The between types is more arbitrary than usual. bone was not considered to warrant any Other invertebrate macrofossils were recorded further study, however. semi-quantitatively using the scale described by Kenward et al. (1986) and Kenward Though too small for detailed analysis, the (1992), again using estimates for extremely bone assemblages have been recorded to abundant taxa. Data pertaining to invertebrate provide a basic archive for the purposes of remains were recorded directly or transferred possible use for comparanda and synthetic from a paper record to computer databases projects. The results, including biometrical 2 Palaeoecology Research Services 2004/04 Technical report: D. C. Cook, York (using Paradox software) for analysis and With the charcoal were modest amounts of rather long-term storage. variably preserved cereal grains (perhaps about 10% by volume of the washovers and perhaps about 1% by volume of the raw sediment). The grain was mainly The interpretative methods employed in this barley (Hordeum) and oats (Avena, some of it A. sativa, study were essentially the same as those used cultivated oat), with a trace of bread/club wheat in work on a variety of sites by Hall, Kenward (Triticum ‘aestivo-compactum’) and rye (Secale and co-workers (see Kenward 1978, with cereale), and with moderate numbers of brome modifications outlined by, for example, (Bromus) grains, presumably present as a crop weed. A high proportion of the grains showed evidence of Kenward 1988; Hall and Kenward 1990; and having begun to germinate (and there were some Kenward and Hall 1995). For the insect detached coleoptiles—shoots—amongst the grains); remains, interpretation rests primarily on a some grains of both types had sprouts reaching almost number of ‘main statistics’ of whole to the full length of the grain (or rarely, in oats, longer assemblages of adult beetles and bugs, and on than this), though for the most part the coleoptiles tended to extend to about 30-50% of the length of the the recognition of ecologically-related groups grain. Perhaps the most likely explanation for this of species. material is that it represents grain which became burnt whilst being dried during the malting process. A clue as to a possible fuel (other than wood) may lie Results in the remains of charred heather (Calluna vulgaris) root/basal twig fragments, though these are perhaps The material is considered in chronological most likely to have arrived with turves or peat, since order. Lists of plant and invertebrate taxa remains of the upper parts of the plant were restricted appear in Tables 1, 2 and 4 with statistics to a trace of charred twig and there were some fragments of charred material (to 5 mm) which may relating to the insect remains in Table 3. have been peat or mor humus (highly humified peaty soil typically developing on heather-dominated (i) Context 11018 and other deposits associated with th heathland or moorland). 10 century ?oven 11057 The cereal crop must have been rather clean: there were Context 11018, the first proper backfill of a feature only a very few weed seeds present, the more abundant (11057) interpreted as a kiln, oven, or furnace, and seen being corn spurrey (Spergula arvensis) and sheep’s along the full length of 11057, was described in the sorrel (Rumex acetosella agg.), probably indicative of field as a greyish-brown silty clay containing large th cultivation of light sandy soils (and so perhaps amounts of charcoal and pot dated to the 10 century. denoting a crop grown locally, in the environs of (The laboratory description was as follows: moist, mid York). There were also modest numbers of small grey-brown to mid to dark grey-brown, crumbly and charred seeds of vetch (probably Vicia spp.), perhaps slightly sticky (working soft), sandy clay silt, with another crop weed. One unusual specimen from the patches of mid reddish-brown silty sand. Very small, second subsample examined was what appeared to be a small and medium-sized stones (2 to 60 mm) were charred emerging cotyledon (seed leaf) of corncockle present, together with fragments of ?rotted (Agrostemma githago) to which a fragment of the very mortar/plaster. Rotted charcoal was common.) characteristic testa (seed coat) was still attached (and Subsamples of 3 kg (assessment) and 5 kg (analysis which afforded the identification). The presence of phase) were taken from this sample. such a macrofossil is not only unusual, but represents a contaminant which had begun to germinate along with The small to moderate-sized washovers, of about 200 the grain prior to charring. The few charred leguminous ml and 320 ml, consisted mainly of charred material, cotyledons which were tentatively assigned to lentil though there were small amounts of fine modern (Lens culinaris Medicus) during assessment (Hall et al.