Week 7

Progress has been slow and then fast in the trenches this week, as a break in the weather brought us some persistent rain in the middle of the week. It gave everyone the opportunity to visit DIG, an experience not to be missed. On site, trainees have continued to record and excavate the archaeology, alongside learning about finds and conservation. Inside DIG
Trench 4
A lot of time has been spent planning this week in Trench 4. The removal of the final dump deposit to the east of the trench left the mortar fully exposed, and it looks like we have found the construction point for the wall cutting through it. Both the backfill of the cut and the mortar were cleaned and photographed before being planned. Work has now begun to excavate the backfill and fully expose the wall. More planning also took place to the west of the wall. A composite plan was produced to show all the deposits, and we have begun to remove the most recent of these.
Finds this week have included brick and tile, medieval pottery, and animal bone.
Trench 5
The removal of the final layer of cobbles this week revealed the make-up deposit for the original surface. This consisted of unconsolidated cobbly rubble, mixed up with lots of soil. This has now been fully recorded and is being removed at the moment. Underneath the make-up deposit there appears to be yet another cobbled surface; although this one has much more variation in colour and stone size than the previous examples.
 Digging in Trench 5
Finds this week have included roof tiles, medieval pottery (both green glaze and gritty wares), and animal bones. There have also been some more exciting finds: a spindle whorl; and a couple of pieces of tile, which have been preliminarily identified as Anglo-Saxon polychrome relief tiles.

Stone spindle whorl (left)

Trench 6
In the southern section of the trench, the construction point for the wall was found early this week. After being recorded, the backfill has now been excavated. A series of cobble filled pits was found cutting into the construction cut, and it is possible that these features are related somehow. To the north of the wall the cobbled surface has been removed, and has revealed a layer of limestone.
Finds have included brick and tile, animal bone, and medieval pottery.
Trench 7
Like all the trenches this week, Trench 7 has seen extensive planning. To the north of the wall a composite plan has been drawn of the area between the tank construction cut and the robber cut for the wall. This shows all the deposits and their relationships. Two small pits have also been excavated; both having been truncated by the robber cut for the wall. To the south of the wall two dump deposits have been recorded and work is continuing to remove these. It is possible that their removal will reveal the construction cut for the wall.
Finds from Trench 7 have included brick and tile, and medieval pottery, along with an unusual copper alloy object.

Keep checking the web diary to stay up to date with events on site. Hopefully next week will be sunny like the end of this one!!