Record Details
| NHER Number: | 67105 |
|---|
| Type of record: | Monument |
|---|
| Name: | Medieval city defences and later, post-medieval remains |
|---|
Summary
In 2016 a test pit dug at the southern edge of this site exposed the remains of a flint wall on which a later brick wall had been constructed. The former was likely to represent the remains of the medieval city wall (NHER 384). A watching brief maintained during subsequent groundworks at this site in 2017 recorded a sequence of deposits likely to represent the uppermost fills of the medieval town ditch. These layers all contained demolition debris, the nature of which demonstrated that this final infilling had occurred during the post-medieval period. An adjacent deposit was thought to be the remains of the earthwork bank known to have existed beside the ditch prior to the construction of the city wall.
Images - none
Location
| Parish: | NORWICH, NORWICH, NORFOLK |
|---|
Full description
August-September 2016. Watching Brief.
Monitoring of excavation of two test pits within area of proposed extension to rear of 72 St Augustine's Street.
The first (Test Pit 1) was adjacent to the west wall of the present building and excavated to a depth of 0.6m. The only deposits encountered were dumps of modern material.
Test Pit 2 was located adjacent to the south boundary wall, which follows the line of the medieval city wall (NHER 384). This was excavated to depth of 0.55m, exposing a substantial flint wall on which a later brick wall had been constructed. The flint wall was interpreted as the probable remains of the city wall. The deposits disturbed again consisted of demolition debris and other modern material.
See report (S1) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 25 May 2023.
November-December 2017. Watching Brief.
Monitoring of groundworks associated with construction of extension to rear of 72 St Augustine's Street.
In the southern part of the site the edge of the medieval city ditch was exposed, along with an adjacent deposit interpreted as the base of the earthwork bank formed out of the upcast from the ditch. These deposits were sealed by substantial layers of probable garden soil, which were overlain by the remains of a red brick outbuilding of probable mid-19th- to early 20th-century date and an associated cobbled surface.
In the northern part of the site the relatively shallow footing trenches exposed a series of deposits that tipped down towards the south and were presumed to represent the final infilling of the city ditch (the northern edge of which clearly lay beyond the excavated area). These deposits all contained some demolition debris in the form of brick and tile fragments and mortar, with the natural of this material demonstrating that this final infilling occurred during the post-medieval period.
Finds recovered (all from unstratified contexts) included three post-medieval pottery sherds and four fragments of post-medieval clay tobacco pipe.
See report (S1) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 25 May 2023.
An archive comprising material from both phases of work at this site has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2018.172).
P. Watkins (HES), 25 May 2023.
Monument Types
- BANK (EARTHWORK)? (Medieval - 1066 AD? to 1539 AD?)
- TOWN DITCH (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
- TOWN WALL (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
- WALL (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
- COBBLED SURFACE (NHER) (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
- FINDSPOT (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
- OUTBUILDING (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
- WALL (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
Associated Finds
- CLAY PIPE (SMOKING) (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
- POT (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
Protected Status - none
Sources and further reading
| --- | Secondary File: Secondary File. |
| <S1> | Unpublished Contractor Report: Wallis, H. 2017. 72 St Augustine’s Street, Norwich. Monitoring of Works under Archaeological Supervision and Control. Heather Wallis. 225. |
Related records
| 384 | Part of: Norwich City Defences (Monument) |