YORKSHIRE
No.13
ARCHAEOLOGY TODAY
Iron in the Blood Savile Street, Sheffield
Inside: Hungate update The Mystery in the Tower Lifting the Lid on York’s Bronze Age
YORK ARCHAEOLOGICAL TRUST
Yorkshire Archaeology Today Autumn 2007 Contents Sheffield Steel
1
Hungate Update: Summer 2007 5 The Mystery in the Tower: Robin Hood Tower, York 8 Lifting the Lid on York’s Bronze Age 11 Conserving the Lawrence St Urn 14 Gingering Up the Viking Age in Lythe 16 Down To Earth Learning at Allerton High 19 Rich in All But Money 20
Number 13 Editors: Richard Hall, Lesley Collett and Christine Kyriacou Photo editing, design and layout: Lesley Collett Printed by B&B Press, Parkgate, Rotherham Yorkshire Archaeology Today is published twice a year. UK subscriptions: £6.00 a year. Overseas subscriptions: £12.00 (sterling) a year. To subscribe please send a cheque payable to Yorkshire Archaeology Today to: York Archaeological Trust, 47 Aldwark YO1 7BX or through Postgiro/CPP to: ACCOUNT 647 2753 National Giro, Bootle, Merseyside, GIR 0AA Yorkshire Archaeology Today is published by York Archaeological Trust. Editorial and contributors’ views are independent and do not necessarily reflect the official view of the Trust. Copyright of all original YAT material reserved; reproduction by prior editorial permission only. © September 2007 York Archaeological Trust is a registered charity, Charity No. 509060: A company limited by guarantee without share capital in England number 1430801. Tel: 01904 663000 Email: ckyriacou@yorkarchaeology.co.uk http://www.yorkarchaeology.co.uk ISSN 1474-4562
Unless stated otherwise, illustrations are by Lesley Collett; photos are by Mike Andrews and members of YAT staff: all are © York Archaeological Trust
Cover Photo
Archaeologists excavating crucible furnaces on the Savile Street site in Sheffield. Photo: Michael Andrews
1
Sheffield Steel
Location of the Savile Street site in Sheffield
In the 19th century much of the strip of land between Savile Street and the River Don, Sheffield, was occupied by a busy group of steel works. A visitor then would probably have heard the sound of colossal steel forging hammers and witnessed a river front lined with massive buildings, towering chimney stacks, and a sky thick with smoke from the furnaces, a scene which, as one of Britain’s great industrial centres, must have characterised much of the city landscape at that time. By the 1990s all of these buildings had gone, leaving very little trace, and by 2007 modern garage forecourts had taken over much of the land they once occupied. Approximately half way along the south side of Savile Street, a nine-storey brick tower block, Savile House, looms over the river Don and surrounding land. Built in the early 1960s it is now derelict and neglected, and is about to receive a multi-million pound redevelopment as part of the much-needed regeneration of this area of Sheffield. Next door, to the east of Savile House, is an open expanse of concrete-covered wasteland approximately 125m long and 35m wide, which is to be the site of a multi-storey car park. The redevelopment of this plot of
land has provided an exciting opportunity for York Archaeological Trust to investigate archaeological remains left by an industry which once dominated this landscape. Previous work undertaken by York Archaeological Trust at Savile House includes a desk-top study and a watching brief, both Part of cementation furnace Scale: 2m in 50cm units
2
of which indicated that the site contained important archaeological remains. These were followed up by the excavation of evaluation trenches in February and March 2007. The evaluation uncovered tantalising glimpses of buildings, furnaces, flues and deep basement rooms, and showed that the site warranted further investigation and recording. YAT was then commissioned by Nathan Incorporated to carry out a final campaign of excavation and recording in May 2007 before the redevelopment began.
Excavating crucibles
It was essential to target the excavation in order to answer specific questions because the team had just four weeks to complete the task. This targeting was guided by the historical map and archive evidence, and by what was known about the site as a result of the previous studies. Thousands of tonnes
of concrete and brick rubble were carefully removed over fifteen days of non-stop machining, to reveal the remains of building foundations, cellars, concrete machine bases, flues and furnaces. In the meantime the field team rapidly excavated and recorded what was uncovered. The evidence for machinery found by the team was, in places, surprisingly ephemeral compared to some of the massive brick structures that were found elsewhere. Much of the heavy machinery associated with iron and steel processing would have stood above ground level and, given the valuable and recyclable nature of the metals from which they were made, it is probable that they had all been removed from the buildings for salvage. Today the only indication of the location, for example, of forging machinery, might be the concrete slab or blocks on which machinery stood. Sometimes relatively subtle marks such as staining on brickwork, a groove cut into stone, or the configuration of metal pins set within concrete, might give some clues as to the type and function of the lost machinery. Other structures such as furnace flues or fire chambers and associated storage rooms were more commonly constructed underground. In places at Savile House the basements were as much as 2m deep below the present ground level. Elsewhere there were complexes of underground brick-built tunnels which are thought to be related to gas-powered re-heating furnaces in which the steel bars would be heated prior to forging. Due to the need for faster and more economical methods of production, driven by the demand for ever greater quantities of steel during the 18th and 19th centuries, there was a rapid development and refinement in steelmaking processes, especially in the technology of furnaces. It is therefore important, for comparative purposes, to record and preserve furnace examples for academic study, and at Savile House some rather impressive ones were uncovered. Three types of furnaces were found during the excavation: cementation or con-
The basic process of steel production using the cementation furnace is the controlled absorption of carbon into bars of iron through prolonged heating over several weeks, in contact with a substance of highcarbon content. This was achieved by heating iron bars packed and covered with finely crushed charcoal in stone troughs within a large bottle-shaped furnace. Most examples of cementation furnaces were built in pairs or multiples so that constant production could be maintained. The steel produced by the cementation process was called ‘blister steel’ on account of its blistered surface, which was the result of carbon monoxide gas, caused by slag impurities in the iron, escaping through the surface of the bars. One problem with blister steel was that because the carbon content was not evenly distributed throughout each bar it was necessary to forge them several times, effectively layering and folding them in order to re-distribute the carbon evenly.
3
verting furnaces, which were used to convert iron into steel; crucible furnaces, used to refine the steel; and re-heating furnaces which melted or softened it prior to casting or forging.
not excavated, and will be preserved in situ beneath the new car park.
Part of reheating furnace Scale: 50cm in 10cm units
The other main objective in this area of the site was to find out if there were any crucible furnaces associated with the cementation furnaces. Further digging near the two cementation furnaces uncovered a series of brick-built vaulted cellars and a row of crucible furnaces. These were located partly outside the excavation area but it was possible to excavate and then record what was accessible prior to backfilling.
In the mid 18th century a man called Benjamin Huntsman developed another type of furnace, called the crucible furnace, which improved the quality of the steel, reduced the amount of forging and increased production. In these furnaces, bars of blister steel were melted to redistribute evenly the carbon content and to remove the remaining impurities. The two types of furnace are often, although not always, found together at steelworks in Sheffield. The evaluation excavation had already shown that there was a well-preserved cementation furnace in the south-east corner of the site. One of the team’s objectives was to establish if there were more or if this was a single furnace. An extension of the excavation area very quickly uncovered a second furnace adjacent to the river wall and established that it was one of a pair. Both these furnaces were recorded by the team, but
A sale plan showing some of the properties in 1855 indicated the location of a ‘converting furnace’ in an area near to the middle of the site. The third main objective was to
Reheating furnace
4 Sale plan of 1855
locate this building and find out if it had contained another cementation furnace. However, it was soon discovered that this was not the case. What was uncovered during two days of machining turned out to be a very impressive row of crucible furnaces arranged along a large brick-built central furnace stack. Nearby, the remains of yet another large and impressive brick-built furnace with large fire-pits and underground brick-arched flues were uncovered. So far the furnace type has not been definitely confirmed, although one likely suggestion is that it was a type of gas powered re-heating furnace in which steel was re-heated prior to forging.
Crucible furnaces
A considerable number of files were found, mainly from the later buildings and
backfills at the site, but otherwise the majority of the metal objects recovered were fragments of metal bars and ingot moulds. At this stage in the post-excavation assessment it seems, from the archaeology and the documentary sources, that it was the production of blister steel, forging and filemaking that were the main output of the steelmakers at Savile House. These exciting discoveries, which are too numerous to be described fully here, will hopefully result in a detailed publication of the Savile House excavation. It is anticipated that post-excavation analysis will enable each of the furnaces and phases of steelworks to be closely dated and linked to companies of steelmakers found in the archival records, and that these previously little-known steelworks will make a significant contribution to the academic study of the Sheffield steel industry. Our thanks to Nathan Incorporated for funding the project, and to Andrew Bourne of SMC Gower Architects, Dinah Saich of South Yorkshire Archaeological Service, the members of the South Yorkshire Industrial History Society, and James Symmonds and Rod Mackenzie of ARCUS, for their many site visits and helpful advice. Ben Reeves
5
Hungate Excavations Summer 2007 It has been a busy summer for the Hungate excavations as YAT continues to work in advance of the Hungate (York) Regeneration development programme as well as expanding our education and outreach initiatives. From June to September we have completed the evaluation and started the central excavation of the Block D development area, continued excavating in the H1 area, hosted YAT’s annual archaeological training school Archaeology Live, had a second group of young people involved with our joint initiative with the City of York Council’s Youth Offending Team and continued our Community Archaeology partnership with the Greater York Community Archaeologist. And of course all of this has been done whilst we have had two further open days and been carrying out five tours a day of the Block H excavation area six days a week over the school holiday season.
The Block D Development Area
Situated to the East of Dundas Street the Block D development area has witnessed extensive archaeological works, both evaluation and excavation, over the last few months. The initial evaluation was carried out to investigate whether the Roman cemetery that had been found in previous evaluation trenches on the west side of Dundas Street continued to the east and into the Block D area. To cover this question three evaluation trenches were excavated down to the drift geology, which incorporates both clay and sand deposits, which are situated c.2.5m below the present ground surface. This evaluation witnessed the full excavation of late 19th-/ early 20th-century material back through time to the earliest potentially Roman land surface. One thing that the evaluation conclusively
Hungate: excavation areas within the development blocks
6
post-excavation stage of this work is currently underway and more information will undoubtedly come to light during this analysis. One area of research that this work will allow us to address is ownership, function and landscape use in what initially appears to be marginal medieval land lying between the parish church of St John’s in the Marsh and the River Foss/Kings Pool area.
Work in progress in D1 evaluation trench. The long rectangular shape of some of the pits cut into the natural clay may suggest that they are clay extraction pits
Work continues in trench D4, revealing and defining the remains of 21 and 22 Dundas Street and their associated backyards
proved was that the Roman cemetery did not extend in to this space as not even the slightest trace of Roman burials or cremations was found during our intensive evaluation. However, during our journey back to the Roman period, at which time it appears that there was an accumulation of soil along the margins of the River Foss, YAT discovered an important sequence of medieval pits dating from at least the 12th century through to the 14th/15th centuries. The majority of these pits appear to have been used as rubbish and cess pits. However, a series of sub-rectangular shaped pits cut into what appears to be a relatively fine clay revealed in the base of evaluation trench D1 may be clay extraction pits (photo: top left), with the clay possibly going on to be used in either pottery, brick or tile manufacture. The
The central excavation area of Block D, D4, started immediately after the previous evaluation finished and is currently concentrating on the 19th- and early 20th-century archaeology that has been discovered in the upper deposits of the trench. These include the partial remains of the back yards associated with buildings that once fronted on to Dundas Place, facets of 21 and 22 Dundas Street, one up one down houses, with their associated backyards (photo: bottom left), the footings for cart sheds, part of Waudby’s Yard and the complete floor plan, with floors surviving in situ, of 25 Palmer Lane, which once fronted on to Waudby’s Yard. The importance and relevance of the 19th- and early 20th-century archaeology is to discover how it relates to the designation that B. Seebohm Rowntree applied to the area in his influential book Poverty: A Study of Town Life, published in 1901, and the subsequent sanitation survey of the area carried out in 1907/08. Interestingly, Rowntree designates the area to the west of Dundas Street, within which the Block H excavation area is situated, as being part of “The poorest districts of the city, comprising the slum areas”, and the area to the east of Dundas Street, within which the Block D excavation area is situated, as being part of “Districts inhabited by the working classes, but comprising a few houses where servants are kept”. The comparisons and contrasts between the physical remains and the material of culture retrieved from the Block D excavations and the Block H excavations will, hopefully, provide an important aspect to the excavations. The work that has been carried out within the D4 excavation area is already revealing the considerable effort that was made in the early
Block H Excavations
The excavation work in the southern H1 area of the trench continues with great momentum. The 18th-, 19th- and early 20thcentury deposits have been fully excavated and the archaeology that has subsequently been revealed dates from the medieval period as well as the 16th and 17th centuries. Part of this archaeology includes the northeast corner of the Cordwainers’ (shoemakers) Guild Hall that was built during the mid to late 16th century on the northern edge of what had been Pound Lane, later re-named Palmer Lane in the early 19th century. The foundations of the guild hall have been partially exposed and it would appear that the building was built from the stonework recovered from the parish church of St John in the Marsh which had fallen out of use c.1548.
Excavation carried out on the northern edge of the Cordwainers’ Guildhall and the lime mortar mixing cistern
A structure probably associated with the building and upkeep of the guild hall, and located immediately to its north has been an unexpected discovery. This is a square pit measuring c.1m x 1m x 1m, cut into the underlying deposits. Its base was lined with edge-set tiles, its sides lined with brick, tile and cobbles (photo: above). The four walls had subsequently been sealed with a lime
plaster. The material retrieved from this pit consisted of a considerable quantity of a rough lime mortar mix which may possibly be the remains of the mortar used in the building of the Cordwainers’ Guild Hall; alternatively it may have been used as a rough first coat while plastering the interior of the guild hall. This type of feature usually doesn’t survive within the archaeological record due to the short-lived nature of the activity and to find such a possible snapshot in the building programme of a guild hall is indeed a rare occurrence.
7
20th century to provide better sanitation and fresh water supplies in this part of York. One example of this appears to be a concerted effort of sanitation engineering across the various private properties, where flushable toilets were inserted into the dry pit privies situated in the backyards of the buildings.
Excavations towards the eastern end of the H1 area have revealed a sequence of what appears to be medieval cess and rubbish pits. These may be a continuation of those found on the east side of Dundas Street within the Block D area. We have also exposed the tops of two kilns, currently awaiting excavation. The major success of the summer months has been the hosting of Archaeology Live within the H1 area. During twelve weeks over 250 people have been involved with Archaeology Live, from one and two day taster sessions to one or two weeks+ courses and summer placements. The Archaeology Live course is a particularly intensive course where the participants are taught archaeological methodology, on-site recording and post-excavation processing, with the practical elements of the course accompanied by lectures on pottery, small finds analysis and archaeological conservation. The response from the participants has
Archaeology Live! participants hard at work in the H1 excavation area
8
been overwhelmingly positive and Archaeology Live will once again be hosted at Hungate in 2008, something to which everyone is already looking forward. In the northern part of the Block H area the community archaeology participants continue to make sterling progress on the 19thand early 20th-century remains that surrounded Haver Lane and St John’s Place. One of the startling results has been the clearing and defining of 13 and 14 St John’s Place, 7 Haver Lane and the City Foundry/Coach Works that lay to the east of theses buildings (photo: right). Work on this group of buildings will show how they compare to those excavated in the H1 area, the Block D area and the Block E area, greatly contributing to our understanding of this neighbourhood during an important period of social change.
Members of the Community Archaeology Group at work on the remains of 19thcentury buildings; (l–r) 13 & 14 St John’s Place, 7 Haver Lane. In the foreground, remains of St John’s Place street surface can be seen.
For the future, autumn 2007 will see the continuation of work in the Block D and Block H areas as well as the start of new excavations within the site of the former 19th-century Union Gas Works, which was situated to south side of Palmer Lane. Pete Connelly
The Mystery in the Tower This particular tower mystery does not concern York’s great patron Richard III, but relates to discoveries made during the programme of repair and consolidation of the Robin Hood Tower on the city walls, at what was originally the north corner of the Roman fortress, behind the Deanery gardens, near the junction of Gillygate and Lord Mayors Walk. During the reduction of the ground level, in preparation for the insertion a new concrete floor, two areas of substantial masonry were exposed. What were they? Remains of the medieval tower? York Archaeological Trust was called in to try and find out.
Location of the Robin Hood’s Tower with earlier Roman fortress defences shown in red
So what information did we have to go on? Little is known of the development of this side of the city’s defences, but it was long postulated from discoveries in the area that the medieval wall followed closely the line of the wall of the Roman fortress. The present Robin Hood Tower is a not medieval but a replacement, built in 1888-9, possibly to form a viewing platform from which to admire the
9
Minster. The earlier medieval tower on this spot was referred to as the Bawing Tower in 1370 and the Frost Tower in 1485; it was not known as the Robin Hood Tower until 1622. The appearance of this medieval tower is far from certain, but depictions of it on a plan by Archer in 1682 show a polygonal plan with three buttresses, and this shape is also shown on the 1886 Ordnance Survey map of York. When the tower was rebuilt in the late 19th century as a three quarter circle it was divided internally into two chambers divided by a brick wall. It became clear after an initial archaeological cleaning that the masonry did not readily align with the standing city walls that approached this corner from Gillygate or Lord Mayors Walk. So, over the course of a week, the Trust removed the remaining 19th-century deposits inside the tower and excavated a total of three small trenches to try and decide what the two newly exposed lengths of masonry could possibly be. Two slots were dug in the corners of the chamber down the face of the masonry stubs, and a longer slot was excavated between the two ends of the masonry stumps. It didn’t take long to show that the masonry stumps had been all but robbed Above: Interior of the tower looking west; masonry foundations exposed in the base possibly relate to the Roman fortress. Scale: 1m in 10cm units Left: Plan of the exposed features
10
out by people wishing to re-use the stone, and all that survived was just one remaining course of limestone and cobbles in what appeared to be hard grey cement, set within a firm clay with occasional river cobbles. This made us begin to wonder if we might have exposed the corner of the Roman fortress. Excavations between the two stubs of masonry showed what may be a robber cut for the masonry, and a small, sub-rectangular pit cut into the underlying clay contained a 17th-century pantile and, more tantalisingly, a sherd of 2nd century Samian pottery. Could this be residual from the original Roman rampart itself ? Excavations by S.N Miller in 1927 behind Gray’s Court, some 150m to the south-east, had shown that the Roman wall was below the medieval wall and was represented by little more than foundations set in concrete, with only two courses of the inner faces of dressed stone surviving, together with traces of a clay bank; the similarities with our discoveries were tantalising. Fortunately, our further excavation may have provided the answers we sought, for the rampart deposit produced sherds of grey ware and Samian pottery dating to the 2nd century. These bolster the hypothesis that the wall stubs form the remains of the north-east corner of the fortress.
View of the excavation looking north-west, showing the 19th-century brick wall bisecting the Tower
But what of the medieval tower, one may ask? Excavations in the north-west and south-east corners of the area exposed remains of limestone walls set in a vertical
Excavation in progress in the southern chamber of the Tower
sided cut just in front of the possible Roman corner. Due to the restrictions imposed by the requirements of the building works these features could not be fully investigated, but the evidence suggests that they were truncated to allow the construction of the internal wall of the present tower. These stubs also aligned more readily with the existing wall walk, and may represent the corners of the original tower. Pottery recovered from the construction cut in the north-east corner dated to the 12th or 13th century. Although post-excavation analysis of the records is yet to get fully under way, some initial conclusions can be drawn. One is that the 2nd-century Roman wall, as seen at Gray’s Court, is almost directly below and perhaps acted as a footing for the medieval wall. The small sections of limestone walling seen in the corners of the excavated area suggest that the medieval tower abutted the face of the remains of the Roman wall, but the 19th-century rebuild substantially removed much of the archaeological sequence. Nonetheless, we can suggest that this mystery, unlike the other mystery involving towers, is partially resolved. Gareth Dean
O
n a crisp afternoon in mid-November 2006, regulars at the Lawrence Street Working Men’s Club in York took a break between well-earned pints to watch YAT archaeologists and conservators lift the remains of something very special from within a small pit at the bottom of a trench just beside the street. The gathered crowd watched as a small, rough ceramic vessel containing the ashes of someone buried there some 3,500 years ago, long before Lawrence Street, or indeed the city of York itself was established, was gently lifted to the surface.
Above: Location of the Lawrence Street site Below: the Bronze Age pot as it first appeared in the site section. Scale: 20cm in 10cm units
This impromptu piece of community archaeology began as a routine watching brief observation of machine-dug foundation trenches, cut in preparation for the building of the new Working Men’s Club. However, the first bucket load of earth that was removed revealed a site crammed with layers of largely undisturbed deposits dating from the Middle Bronze Age to the Victorian era. A trench was dug rapidly by YAT archaeologists in an attempt to make sense of the complex deposits before their destruction, revealing a sequence of layers of occupation, structures and ditches which was in places more than two metres deep. The site clearly had even more potential to fill in vital gaps in our knowledge of this area of immediately extra-mural York than did the nearby site we investigated some 50m behind the Lawrence Street frontage at Leake Street in 1989, when remains of Viking-Age and early medieval date were uncovered (Interim, Volume 14/2, pp 25–31). Phase 1: the Bronze Age
The earliest deposits proved to be difficult to date due to the scarcity of finds. However, just as the final recording was being finished and preparations were being made for final photographs, a small fragment of very rough pottery was revealed in one of the edges of the excavation. Further cleaning uncovered the edge of a small, rough, hand-made pot just poking through the face of this section, nearly two metres below street level and very close to the bottom of the 1.2m-deep trench. The pot had been placed in a small pit, the outline of which was barely visible in the surrounding deposits.
11
TAKING THE LID OFF THE BRONZE AGE IN YORK
12
After recording its position and stratification, the time came to lift the vessel carefully and reveal whether it was a whole object or just a large fragment. The upper part of the pot had been lost, presumably broken off by ploughing in the distant past, but otherwise the vessel was complete. Back in the YAT conservation department, careful excavation of the contents by conservators revealed that it was indeed a cremation urn containing many tiny white fragments of burnt human bone (see article, p.14). Pottery specialists have dated the ceramic vessel to the Middle Bronze Age (c.1500 BC).
Anglo-Scandinavian ditch fills exposed in the machine-dug trench. Scale: 20cm in 10cm units
What makes this particular find special is its proximity to the city. Bronze Age cremations have been found elsewhere in the countryside around York and a number of Bronze Age finds are documented from in and around the city, but until now a Bronze Age cremation urn has never been found so close to the centre of York. Considered along with these other finds, this discovery is an exciting
addition to our knowledge of the prehistoric landscape that pre-dated the city. Phase 2: Roman agriculture
A series of faint ditches and cuts had removed the top of the pit and the deposits into which the cremation urn had been placed. A single fragment of Roman pottery was found in what may be a layer of ploughsoil above the cremation urn. A single sherd of Roman pot may not be considered sufficient to date these deposits with certainty, but pottery recovered from deposits below and above these otherwise barren layers indicate they were certainly formed at some time between the Bronze Age and the AngloScandinavian period. Phase 3: Anglo-Scandinavian buildings
Some time after the Roman period the formerly agrarian landscape became more built-up. Numerous post-holes and pits were found, and sherds of Torksey-type pottery dating to the 9th/10th century were recovered from associated deposits. Many of the features that were excavated or recorded in section contained quantities of burnt daub as well as sherds of AngloScandinavian pottery. The presence of daub is typical of Anglo-Scandinavian buildings. The majority of it was vitrified, suggesting that these buildings were probably destroyed by a fire. (When subjected to intense heat, the clay in the daub vitrifies into hard ceramic lumps which could be mistaken for fragments of brick.) Deposits discoloured by heat were found in most of the trenches and formed a clearly visible burnt layer, above which there was a distinct clearance horizon where what remained had been levelled off, and new structures had replaced the old. This phenomenon was seen across most of the site, suggesting a catastrophic destruction consuming a number of buildings. Due to lack of time and resources there was little that could be done to understand these structures in any more detail other than by obtaining a record of their presence. Some sparse dating material was recovered from stratified deposits in the trench sections.
Conclusion
The Anglo-Scandinavian activity at the site was found to be quite extensive, stretching several metres back from the present day street front. Inter-cut features, probably relating to more than one phase of building, along with ditches and pits, were found across most of the footprint area of the new building. It would only have been possible to identify the full plans of these buildings via an open area excavation, which would have clearly shown alignments of posts, concentrations of stake holes and occupation deposits. Unfortunately, in the circumstances, all that YAT staff could do was watch the machine dig the trenches through the archaeological deposits and then record the trench sections. Phase 4: Medieval buildings
The Anglo-Scandinavian period deposits appeared to have been truncated at an approximately uniform level across the site before new buildings were erected; foundations for four or five buildings were found overlying the Anglo-Scandinavian deposits. A number of cobble and brick foundations, typical of medieval building construction in York, were identified, although, as with the Anglo-Scandinavian structures, it was impossible to ascertain the actual layout or extent of these buildings because of the very small size of the excavated trenches.
The watching brief and excavation at Lawrence Street Working Men’s Club has given us a glimpse of the potentially fascinating archaeology of this area. Although some time was found to allow for a broadbrush record of the remains to be made, it was nothing like enough to do justice to the quality of preservation, extent and scope of the archaeological remains, which would normally have warranted full excavation. Possible Anglo-Scandinavian burnt layers at the base of the trench. Scale: 20cm in 10cm units
It is certainly evocative to imagine that three and a half thousand years ago a funeral gathering congregated on the spot where today cars, motorbikes and pedestrians pass by in their thousands, and that the mourners placed a small pottery vessel containing the remains of a beloved member of their community into what was then, presumably, a more peaceful patch of ground. Did this person grow up knowing the surrounding landscape of the Foss and the Ouse, living somewhere nearby? It is compelling to imagine how the landscape might have looked to them, and to the Roman, Viking and later occupants. To sum up, it is remarkable that the changing uses of this landscape from a ritual site of prehistoric burial to Roman farmland, and then on to Viking-Age, medieval and postmedieval settlement, can all be seen represented in a single drawing of a section just below the busy modern street, made during a watching brief. Maybe in the future an opportunity to excavate more fully will present itself and allow detail to be added to our knowledge of the origins of Lawrence Street. Ben Reeves
13
The successive building phases following the Viking-Age occupation of the site were dated using the ceramic assemblage. Each century from the 9th to the 20th was represented by material recovered during the watching brief/excavation, showing a striking continuity of Viking-age, medieval and postmedieval domestic occupation.
14
Y
AT’s archaeological conservators spend much of their time in the laboratory, but one sunny day in November 2006 we were called out to the site of 27 Lawrence Street, York to assist in lifting a prehistoric cremation urn which had been discovered in the side of the excavation (in archaeologists’ terminology ‘in the section’). Pottery of this age is notoriously fragile, hence the need to seek our specialist help and advice to ensure it was recovered in one piece. Although the urn had lost its top, the base and much of the lower half of the vessel seemed to be intact and in relatively good condition. This made the lift simpler and easier as consolidation or plaster bandage did not appear to be necessary. As the urn was situated in the section, a standard lift on a soil pedestal would not be possible. However, one advantage of the urn’s position was the fact that its full extent could be determined.
Conserving the Lawrence Street Cremation Urn Top right: Mags Felter of YAT’s Conservation Laboratory and site supervisor Ian Milsted wrap the urn in cling-film before removing it from site Below: Mags excavates the contents of the Bronze Age urn in the laboratory
A thin metal sheet was therefore inserted into the section approximately two centimetres under the base of the urn and the soil, which was sandy and easy to remove, was excavated around it, leaving 2 centimetres all the way round the urn for support. The most difficult part of the lift was trying to excavate the soil from behind the urn but this was achieved by removing soil in the section above the urn and gradually working down behind it. After the soil had been cleared from around the urn, strips of cling-film were placed around the supporting soil and tied in place. Cling-film is a useful supporting material when used in this way as it can be stretched slightly and is inexpensive and easy to remove. Once the urn had been supported, the remainder of the soil was cleared from around it and the metal sheet was lifted, with the urn on top. The urn was then transported to YAT’s conservation laboratory.
The fabric of the urn itself was relatively robust and in good condition, but burial in the ground since the Bronze Age had taken its toll in the form of delamination of the surface and minor cracking, especially near the base and at the broken edges. Several loose pieces were also discovered near the top of the urn during excavation, but it was unfortunately not possible to match these to the broken edges of the vessel. It would seem that a significant proportion of the urn had been damaged and lost, including the
15
Back in the lab the urn was X-rayed to reveal what might be inside it, but nothing significant was shown up. The interior fill of the urn was then excavated in a series of 2 centimetre deep stages or ‘spits’, which were recorded using digital photographs. In the case of some burial urns, bones or objects may be placed in a particular way within the vessel and it is therefore important to record the fill carefully during excavation. This urn did not appear to have been filled in this way; the jumble of cremated bone became denser towards the base, consistent with an arbitrary filling of the urn. The bones themselves, although obviously charred and cracked, may not have been particularly highly fired as larger, and in some cases identifiable, pieces, were found. The fill of the urn, including the bone remains, was placed by spits in individual bags, ready for the osteologist. Once the fill had been excavated, the urn itself was left to dry, after which it was cleaned, first with dry brushing and then wet cleaned using a 50/50 solution of Industrial Methylated Spirits and water.
entire rim. In order to stabilise the urn for handling and long-term storage, the structure was strengthened using a chemical consolidant, in this case 15% Primal WS24 (acrylic colloidal dispersion) in water. This is applied with a pipette and is rapidly absorbed into the surface of the ceramic, where the water evaporates leaving the adhesive to support the fragile areas. This particular consolidant works well with a ceramic such as this in that it causes very little colour change and does not create a shiny surface to the fabric.
The urn during microexcavation in the laboratory.
The urn was now stable and ready to be handled and studied further by the pottery specialists. Packaging in an archival box with acid-free tissue supports will allow it to be stored long-term, although it remains to be seen whether further conservation work will be necessary in the future. Mags Felter
The urn finally excavated, cleaned and consolidated
16
Gingering up the Viking Age in Lythe The parish church of St Oswald, Lythe, North Yorkshire is renowned for its large and nationally important collection of Viking-Age stonework, including a number of hogbacks, cross-shafts and cross-heads. Jim Lang, who studied them for the British Academy’s Corpus of Anglo-Saxon Stone Sculpture (CASSS to its friends), catalogued thirty-seven pieces, a numerically spectacular group. Why this little church at the north end of Whitby strand should have such a relatively huge number of these monuments isn’t certain. Jim suggested, on the basis of a couple of bits of architectural sculpture, that there had been a pre-Viking Anglo-Saxon monastic cell here, and David Stocker has suggested that the church may have been patronized by successful Viking-Age merchants who used this area as their route for seaborne trade and who chose to have themselves and their success commemorated by these monuments.
Below, top: W. G. Collingwood’s illustration of the Lythe hogback (from Yorkshire Archaeological Journal, 1911) and bottom, the same stone drawn in 2007
Many of these stones were incorporated into the foundation and walls of the west tower in 1769. They were removed during the construction of the existing church in 191011, and most have since resided either in the crypt or beneath the tower. Some, including an almost complete hogback, were placed
in the graveyard where they have accumulated nearly a century’s growth of lichen and moss. Hogbacks are carved stone monuments, often shaped like a relatively long, thin, low house but with a curved rather than a horizontal ridge, rather like a hog’s back; hence the name. North Yorkshire is hogback heartland, making it a form of monument specifically associated with this part of Britain, although there are other examples elsewhere. Lythe’s hogback grave markers are an outstanding collection, numerically the largest group in England; in the hogback heartland, this is hogback heaven. The group was first described and illustrated by the doyen of pre-conquest sculpture studies, W. G. Collingwood, in an article in the Yorkshire Archaeological Journal in 1911, just after they were removed from the tower. Among the best preserved of the hogbacks, although not complete, for both ends had been hacked off, was a stone with an interlace design on one side which Collingwood illustrated. The other side, he asserted, was ‘in the same style’; but he didn’t publish a drawing of it. It’s unfortunate that both ends have been removed, for these monuments sometimes terminate in clasping bears; the best known examples are, perhaps, at Bromptonin-Allerton. Jim Lang, in his study of hogbacks which preceded his CASSS volume, christened this piece ‘Lythe 17’ and described it as a complete monument of sandstone, 113 cm long, with a fret pattern along its top ridge. On what he called Side A he reported ‘Traces of interlace on this worn side are discernible in low relief, perhaps medially incised. It consists of a single element twisted near each end and once in the centre. At each end of the long interior panels so formed is a ring, but the pattern was probably more complex originally’. Of the other side, Side B, Jim said ‘This has interlace in the same flat strand. Collingwood’s drawing is very accurate
The hogback in the graveyard (Photo: Dick Raines)
indeed. There are scrolls and twists flanking the chief intersection of a loosely ordered circuit’. These observations clearly formed the basis for Jim’s CASSS entry in which this stone, there catalogued as Lythe 29, was described as ‘now partly buried’. One long side (‘A’ in the CASSS nomenclature) was now referred to as ‘very worn indeed’; the other long side (‘C’) was described as having ‘remains of interlace in the same flat strand as face A’. Perhaps, just perhaps, Jim’s stress here on the extent of wear on side ‘A’ hints that he wasn’t entirely convinced that the two sides were, in fact, identical. Although recognised as important by enthusiasts, and the subject, as we have seen above, of scholarly comment, the stones deserve to be well known and better appreciated by a wider public. This is now coming to fruition thanks to funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund for a public display within the existing church. In order to show them to best effect, many of the stones needed conservation treatment, and so YAT’s conservation team was commissioned by the exhibition designers, Dick Raines Design, to clean and conserve the stones. In the summer of 2006 a team of four burly gentlemen was able to manhandle hogback Lythe 29 from its resting place in the graveyard, wheel it up a gravel path and load it onto the back of a lorry (no mean feat!) and transport everything to YAT’s premises in York. This has provided an opportunity to investigate the stone carefully and in more detail. In terms of shape, for example, there is just a hint in an upward kink at one surviving end of the stone that there may originally have been interesting terminals at either end; but bears remain elusive!
Lythe 29 after cleaning; a crude human figure between two animals could be made out on one side
Scenes similar to this are known on other bits of Anglo-Scandinavian sculpture, and have been commented on by, among others, Richard Bailey in his book Viking Age Sculpture. A good example is on another hogback, this time from the church at Sockburn on Tees in Co Durham. Both long sides show a central ‘gingerbreadesque’ figure with arms outstretched. Critically, one hand is in the mouth of an attacking beast which is itself constrained by thick cord of interlace. This, Bailey suggests, is a depiction of a scene from Scandinavian mythology, in which the god Tyr, in a successful bid to bind the wolf Fenrir after it had got out of control, placed a magic cord in its mouth and, in so doing, had his hand bitten off. Why would this be
17
One long side is as described by Jim Lang in the Corpus volume, and is carved with an interlace decoration. The stone clearly shows how the carver worked, picking out the design with a pointed tool that has left its distinctive marks. On the other face, which had been semi-obscured from Jim’s view, the first task in the conservation process was carefully to remove the century’s growth of lichen and moss, using a combination of gentle brushing and washing with water. As the underlying pattern was revealed an exciting discovery was made as we quickly realised that, contrary to received wisdom going back to Collingwood in 1911, the two sides exhibited very different scenes. In the centre of the stone, at its top, a human head was gradually revealed, with the crude facial characteristics of a modern-day “gingerbread” man! As more vegetation was removed it became clear that this figure was being attacked by two animals.
18
Bad Wolf: Sockburn hogback and (below) motif from Sutton Hoo purse lid offer parallels to the newly-exposed Lythe design (bottom right)
an appropriate symbolism to represent on a grave marker in a Christian cemetery? Possibly because for an early tenth-century community still with strong and relatively recent memories of a pagan Scandinavian pantheon with associated myths and beliefs, a self-sacrificing hero figure such as Tyr in this context could be compared to the Christ figure in the bible story. Although the Lythe 29 carving is cruder and simpler than that at Sockburn, it may be that this is another representation of this mythological scene. There are two crucial differences, however, in that the Lythe figure seemingly has each of his hands in the mouth of a beast; and also there is no sign of the binding. Whether this absence is original or can be attributed to deliberate damage or to erosion over the centuries is questionable although, if we take the other side as a benchmark and believe that Collingwood’s original drawing of 1911 was accurate, then it does seem that some detail has been lost from that side over the last ninety-six years. The lower part of the figural scene has certainly been obliterated by the cutting away of stone; the tool marks of a chisel can plainly
be seen. Adhering mortar attests to the previous use of the hogback as a building block in the 1769 church, and it was presumably this phase of re-use that necessitated the mutilation. During our conservation process small areas of mortar have been chipped away with a small chisel to reveal more of the figure beneath, but much of it will be left in place as it’s not causing any damage to the underlying sandstone. The hogback and other stones will be returned to St Oswald’s in the autumn of 2007 where the public will be able to admire the skills of the 10th century masons. Ian Panter and Richard Hall
Typing ‘British Academy Corpus of AngloSaxon Stone Sculpture’ into your computer search engine will give you access to some of the excellent pictures of pre-Norman sculpture which have been taken especially for the CASSS volumes, although pictures of Lythe are not yet available. URL: http://www.dur.ac.uk/corpus/
19
Down to Earth Learning at Allerton High School In Spring 2007 YAT undertook a geophysical survey at Allerton High School, Leeds, as part of an archaeological assessment of an area that was to be built upon as the school expanded. It was anticipated that there might be traces of a Roman camp which has been thought by some to occupy the fields where the school was first built in the 1930s. No evidence for the presence of a camp was found by the geophysical survey, but it was decided that an investigative trench should be dug in order to look at anomalies that were recorded, and that the school pupils should be involved in the process. YAT was asked to return to the school to run a small training excavation as part of the school’s enrichment activity week and give the pupils, supervised by Deputy Head Teacher Mrs Heather Scott, a chance to experience archaeology at first hand. Between 17th and 19th July, YAT staff supervised the excavation of two 3m x 20m trenches. Topsoil was stripped using a mechanical digger, after which pupils from Year Seven through to sixth formers were given the chance to use geophysical survey equipment and help to excavate the exposed deposits. Over three days a fine collection of Victorian pottery, glass fragments, metal objects and even some coins was collected. At the end of each day the pupils documented their work in web-log diaries and researched their finds, which included some blue and white ‘willow pattern’ china and a half-crown dating to 1818. This project showed the value of hands-on digging experience for children in making the past tangible through the discovery of genuine artefacts which they were discovering themselves. Some found very little at first and were disappointed, whilst others struck lucky and accumulated piles of pottery, glass bottle and clay pipe fragments in their finds trays. However, at the end of each day everybody had a good collection of artefacts which they could later research in the classroom. A group of special needs students joined the dig each afternoon and seemed particu-
Top right: Ben Reeves explains the finer points of trowelling Below: Gareth Dean tries to keep order in the trench
larly to enjoy the experience. They were soon presenting the supervisors with a rapid and seemingly endless supply of pottery and clay pipe. Afterwards the pupils were allowed to take their finds trays inside to wash what they had found. Each morning the supervisors were presented with the washed collection by the group who quite obviously had no desire to return to their classroom until their afternoon digging session began. Deputy Head Teacher Heather Scott said; ‘All the students who took part had the most fantastic experience and many have even reported that they would like to become archaeologists.’ Sadly the trenches revealed no trace of Roman finds or features; the geophysical anomalies were of geological origin. It seems that if there ever was a Roman camp at Allerton High School it may have been lost to ploughing or 20th-century landscaping. However, the process of establishing the absence of Roman archaeology may have stimulated an interest in the past, and possibly inspired a number of budding young enthusiasts who may go on to become future professional archaeologists. No wonder the school’s website boasts of ‘Down to Earth Learning’! Ben Reeves
20
Rich In All But Money: Life in Hungate 1900-1938
Running alongside the huge Hungate excavation, York Archaeological Trust is also carrying out an oral history project on Hungate involving the production of a series of oral history books. The first book to be produced in this series has just been published, and is a new edition of Rich In All But Money: Life in Hungate 19001938 by Van Wilson, originally published in 1996 (which sold out in 6 weeks!). The book is the result of an oral history project run by the Trust and York Oral History Society at the Trust’s Archaeological Resource Centre (now called DIG). Interested people were interviewed about their memories of the area, and these interviews, along with photographs, form the basis of the book. The result is a marvellous portrait of life in Hungate in the early 20th century, told by the men and women who actually lived there. Seebohm Rowntree described Hungate as ‘one of the main slum districts of York’. The picture that emerges from the reminiscences is indeed one of desperate poverty, but also of self-sufficiency and great community spirit. We learn of a world of unemployment, pawnbrokers and disease, but also of dutifully scrubbed doorsteps, improvised toys, linnet singing competitions and exciting charabanc outings to the sea. The interviewees were, of course, children or young adults at the time they are talking about, and the book clearly reflects this perspective, with chapters on ‘a child’s eye view’ and schooldays, as well as those on the environment, industry and the workplace, shops, leisure time, poverty, health and the community spirit. Considerable historical research, including York Health Office surveys, helps place the oral record in context. The revised Hungate book links in with the current archaeological activity at Hungate, with images of the exca-
Garden Place, off Hungate, around 1900 © City of York Council
vated site and recently excavated finds used to enhance the text. Work is also proceeding well on the second book in this oral history series, on York during the Second World War, with particular reference to Hungate. A number of interviews for this have already been carried out, as part of York’s Home Front Recall Project in 2005, and the book should be ready for publication later this year. The third book planned will cover work in the Hungate area from the 1930s to the present (such as Adams Hydraulics, York Bedding Factory, Bellerby’s, the telephone exchange, Northern Electric, the ambulance station, and even the abattoirs and pubs in the area) . Once again interviews will be carried out with interested people. We would be delighted to hear from anybody who worked in Hungate and would like to share their memories with us. As well as producing this series of oral history books, the Trust intends to hold Open Days and workshops on the subject. We hope that by adding oral history to what we can find out through archaeological excavations and historical research, we may be able to build up a fuller picture of life in Hungate during the 20th century. Christine Kyriacou and Van Wilson
Email: ckyriacou@yorkarchaeology.co.uk Tel: 01904 663006 Wilson, Van (2007), Rich In All But Money: Life in Hungate 1900-1938 York Archaeological Trust £9.95 ISBN 978-1 874454 40 3
JOIN THE FRIENDS OF YORK ARCHAEOLOGICAL TRUST
Receive YORKSHIRE ARCHAEOLOGY TODAY twice a year Receive the Annual Report of YORK ARCHAEOLOGICAL TRUST Free, unlimited entry to JORVIK, Coppergate Free, unlimited entry to DIG, St Saviourgate 10% discount in the DIG shop 10% discount on the training dig 30% discount on all the Trust’s academic publications when purchased direct (one of each publication per person) Access to the Trust’s highly acclaimed lunchtime lectures
A special programme of visits, day schools, lectures, site tours and social events. By joining you will be contributing directly to the work of York Archaeological Trust. The Friends donate every penny of profit directly to the Trust to further its important and exciting work. Membership rates Adult
£19.00 pa
Joint Adult (2 adults at same address)
£27.00 pa
Family (2 adults and all children at same address) £31.00 pa Over 60s
£17.00 pa
Joint over 60s
£23.00 pa
Student in full-time education
£17.00 pa
Overseas member (sterling)
£30.00 pa
Life membership (single)
£200.00
Life membership (couple)
£250.00
To join The Friends, send a cheque payable to FOYAT to: The Friends, York Archaeological Trust, 47 Aldwark, York YO1 7BX
SMALL TOWNS IN N.YORKSHIRE: ORIGINS and EARLY DEVELOPMENT (inc. Ripon, Helmsley, Scarborough, Northallerton, Thirsk and Yarm)
A day school to be held at Hambleton Forum, Bullamoor Road, Northallerton, on Saturday October 13th 2007 from 9.45am. Cost: £12.50. Bookings to 12 Smithwell Lane, Heptonstall, West Yorkshire HX7 7NX. Further information from 01924 475618
OPEN DAYS
FREE ADMISSION, site tours and special events:Saturday September 29th 2007 Sunday November 11th 2007 Sunday February 17th 2008
SITE TOURS Scheduled site tours at a cost of £1 per person are available daily from DIG, St Saviourgate, York Tel: 01904 543402
www.dighungate.com
In this issue...
www.yorkarchaeology.co.uk