Record Details

NHER Number:779
Type of record:Monument
Name:Trial excavation of city wall, River Lane/Barrack Street

Summary

In 1987 excavation of part of the city wall took place in this area, opposite the law courts. The work discovered that the turret sections visible above ground are modern but that they overlie the buried remains of the original turret. It was also demonstrated that the city wall had been much refaced in this area, and that it extends to a depth of some 2.3m.

Images - none

Location

Grid Reference:TG 23562 09305
Map Sheet:TG20NW
Parish:NORWICH, NORWICH, NORFOLK

Full description

19-23 January 1987. Trial Trenching.
Trial excavation directed by B. S. Ayers (NAU) was undertaken by J. E. Bown (NAU) and J. Huddle (NAU) for the Norfolk Archaeological Unit and Anglian Water.
The work demonstrated that:
1. That those parts of a turret (23563 09305) visible above ground level next to the River Wensum are of modern construction, but that
2. They overlie the buried remains of the turret which has an entrance doorway dressed in brick with a brick-on-edge threshold.
3. The city wall has been much refaced, not always on the correct alignment, wall core being faced at one point giving the impression that the wall steps inward when, in fact, excavated evidence shows that it continues in a straight line (23563 09307).
4. The city wall extends to a depth of some 2.3m at a point some 20m north of the river (23553 09340) with associated undisturbed archaeological deposits extending at least 3m east of the interior face of the wall.
Report circulated to Anglian Water and HBMC.
Copy held by NAU.
The archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2020.79). It includes plan (S2), sections, black/white photographs and colour slides.
Excavation details in plan.
See report (S1) for further details.
Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 19 June 2020.

Monument Types

  • TOWN DEFENCES (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)

Associated Finds - none

Protected Status - none

Sources and further reading

---Record Card: NCM Staff. 1973-1989. Norfolk Archaeological Index Primary Record Card - Norwich.
---Secondary File: Secondary File.
---Slide: Various. Slide.
---Fiche: Exists.
---Photograph: CWP.
<S1>Unpublished Contractor Report: Ayers, B. S. 1987. Report of Trial Excavations at River Lane, Norwich - January 1987. Norfolk Archaeological Unit.
<S2>Drawing: Unknown. Unknown. Sketch plan of River Lane/Barrack Street. Film. 1:1250.

Related records

384Part of: Norwich City Defences (Monument)

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