Week 6

Another wet week made the ground very muddy, and required a protective netting to be laid in order to protect the grass around much of the excavation area (the public route being protected this way since the beginning). This is proving to be a poor summer, such a contrast to the dry summer of 2003. Over the weekend of 24-25 July the site hosted events as part of the York Roman Festival. Again some 2,000 people visited, and the overall number of visitors passed 10,000.

Trench 3

Work continues on the both the layers within the large pit and in the surrounding ramparts. A fascinating picture is beginning to emerge as evidence appears to show that turfs were laid as part of the rampart construction and individual turfs can be seen in the section towards to the top of the trench. Clear differences in soil colour and composition can also be seen but further work needs to take place in order to understand their significance. One exciting find was part of a box flue tile, part of the ingenious heating system use by the Romans. Whether a nearby building enjoyed this luxury or whether this was dumped material from some distance away is not clear, but it is reminder of the sophistication of life in the Roman fortress. A small strap end was also recovered from this trench this week but this awaits cleaning before it can be identified.

The entrance to the Second World War air-raid shelter in Trench 4

Trench 4

Work on re-exposing the steps to the air raid shelter was completed this week. It is anticipated that medieval deposits will be exposed in this trench in the course of the following week. An unusual small wooden object, possibly part of a playing piece or some sort of fitting, was recovered but needs conservation work prior to further investigation.

Trench 5

The Roman rampart revealed in Trench 5

More plaster! As work continues in this trench the quantities of plaster from the robbed wall continue to be recovered, providing new challenges for conservation placements working in the laboratory. On the other side of the trench, effectively outside the Multangular Tower, upon removal of the medieval rubble what appears to be the top of the Roman fortress rampart was encountered. This is further evidence of the large-scale truncation of the rampart as part of the construction of the medieval hospital.

The foundations of internal walls within the Multangular Tower revealed in Trench 6

Trench 6

A new trench was started this week which is designed to look at the internal structure of the Multangular Tower. This has exposed an internal partition wall running across the back of the standing projecting bastion. One objective is to discover the extent of Miller's 1920s trench; he reported encountering concrete foundations and timber piles. If these are re-discovered there is the potential for dendrochronological dating of these piles which would clearly help enormously in verifying the understood chronology of the early fortress.

Possible gaming piece from Trench 4 (diameter 15mm)

Opening the first part of Trench 6