Excavations at Tilbury Fort,Essex

Tilbury Fort is situated on the N. bank of the Thames 25 miles doumstream from London (TQ 651 754) (FIG. 1). It is the best preserved example of late 17th-century military engineering in England and has been in guardianship since 1950. Plans by the Department of the Environment to alter the visitor access to the site from the riverfront to the landward approach necessitated excavations to establish the original construction of the earthworks, redan and ravelin and to identify the routes and levels of the roadways. Excavations were undertaken in 1973 by Jerry Pratt, concentrating on the ravelin, and in 1980 by the Passmore Edwards Museum. The results of both excavations are presented in this report.     

Excavations at Lochrin Distillery,Edinburgh

Abstract

Lochrin Distillery was founded by John Haig around 1780, at a time when the scale of Scottish distilleries was increasing dramatically and distilling was, briefly, the most significant industry in the land. Nevertheless, frequent increases in excise duty meant that these were challenging times for distillers, and Lochrin was mothballed and re-opened several times before finally closing in 1848. By the end of the century, the distillery buildings had been swept away.

In 2005, Abercorn Archaeology LLP excavated parts of the former distillery prior to redevelopment, concentrating on the still house. Remains of six still bases considered to derive from three phases of construction were recorded, together with the footings of a worm tub and a large basement structure. The excavations have clarified the evolution of the distillery, confirming that large lowland distilleries of the period were dynamic enterprises, frequently adapted in the light of the challenges facing the industry.     

Excavations on the Titelberg,Luxembourg

Abstract

The center of the hillfort “Titelberg,” near Petange in extreme SW Luxembourg, was investigated in 1972-74 by the University of Missouri at Columbia and the Luxembourg Musées de l'État. The American excavations have revealed a side street which, when considered with evidence unearthed by the Luxembourgers, indicates an insula system for the hillfort in Gallo-Roman times. Habitation lasted until the 4th century A.C., but this part of the site was most heavily used in the time of Augustus, when a coin-flan casting operation was conducted in a provincial Roman-style building. Underneath this building were found 14 successive floor levels in at least two different Celtic-style structures also housing coin-casting operations. Calibrated and adjusted radiocarbon dates support an archaeological dating to ca. 300 B.C. in La Tène Ic or II for the earlier of the latter structures. The late Iron Age hillfort was preceded by two separate Neolithic occupations.     

Excavations at Balakot,Pakistan, 1973

Abstract

During the winter of 1973–74 preliminary excavations were conducted at the ancient coastal site of Balakot in Sanmiani Bay, Pakistan. Two periods are represented at the site. Period B, capping the mound, represents the Mature Indus (Harappan) period, the earliest urban period of South Asia. Balakot is one of five known coastal sites of the Indus Civilization. It is hoped that evidence will be discovered in subsequent seasons bearing on the question of the assumed sea trade contacts between the Indus and the Persian Gulf and Mesopotamia in the centuries just before and after 2000 B.C.

Period A at Balakot is designated as Early Indus. The more than 6 m. of occupational debris resting on sterile soil represent the developmental stages leading directly into the earliest civilization of South Asia. The Early Indus sequence at Balakot contains ceramic elements related to many of the so-called “painted pottery cultures” of Baluchistan and the southern Indus Valley. The proposed series of extensive excavations at the site should provide a sound chronological and cultural framework within which any of these presently isolated cultural traditions can be studied.

This report describes the location and potential importance of the site. The most significant findings of the first season's work are presented.     

Excavations at Potovens,near Wakefield

Abstract

The excavation of pottery and clay pipe kilns at Potovens has indicated the essentially local character of the wares produced and the limited nature of their market. From the late 15th century until the third quarter of the 18th-century potteries were being worked on the margins of the common land north of Wakefield, and documentary evidence provides the names of the potters and details of their activities.     

In Medio Chori: The Tomb of Thomas of Corbridge,Archbishop of York,in Southwell Minster

Four medieval archbishops of York died in their palace at Southwell in Nottinghamshire. Three archbishops were buried in Southwell Minster. Archbishop Thomas of Corbridge was buried in an important position in the middle of the choir. His tomb had a marble top with an inlaid brass memorial. Thus Corbridge was held in high esteem and there is some evidence that he may have been regarded as an unofficial saint.     

Excavations at Houndhill,near Barnsley,Yorkshire

Abstract

A ‘cottage’ weaving industry was established at Houndhill, family seat of the Elmhirsts in Worsbrough, near Barnsley, during the mid-16th century. It ceased early in the 17th century but excavation has shown it was revived under new ownership in the late 18th century. During the 19th century the mill became a general farm store and was totally demolished in the 1930s to permit a garden extension. The excavation was planned to retain any remaining features for conservation as part of the historical interest of the residence.¹     

Excavations at Jujah, Shibam, Wadi Hadhramawt

The Institute of Fine Arts of New York University excavated at Jujah in the Wadi Hadhramawt for two brief seasons in 1994 and 1995. This report deals with the architectural remains, the pottery and other dating materials. A report of the small finds will appear in a second article.     

Excavations at Lismahon,Co. Down

Abstract

There is a Growing recognition that introduced species are direct records of cultural activity and that studies of their biogeography have the potential to tell us about patterns of human migration, trade and even ideology. In England the fallow deer (Dama dama dama) is one of the earliest and most successful animal introductions, whose establishment has traditionally been attributed to the Normans. However, recent investigations of Old English place names have raised the possibility that the term *pohha/pocca relates to fallow deer, suggesting that the species was widely established in the Anglo-Saxon landscape. This suggestion deserves serious consideration as it has implications for our understanding both of AngloSaxon society and the impact of the Norman Conquest. This paper therefore presents a critical review of the literary, iconographic, place-name and zooarchaeological evidence for fallow deer in early medieval England and beyond.     

Excavations on the Town Wall,Roushill, Shrewsbury

Abstract

The pentice, a medieval, colonnaded walkway centrally placed on the south side of the High Street in Winchester, Hampshire, occupies part of the site of the former Norman palace. Other medieval colonnaded walkways exist, notably at Chester and Totnes, but it is not entirely clear when these latter walkways were created, nor whether they resulted from piecemeal development over time, or from a single, concerted campaign of building. These questions are explored with regard to The Pentice in Winchester between c. 1250 and c. 1550 in this interdisciplinary study, which includes evidence from archaeology, dendrochronology, documents and standing remains. Key new evidence has come recently from dendrochronology, allowing a re-evaluation of documentary evidence and of dates at present ascribed to standing remains on typological grounds. This study presents fresh evidence for the structure of The Pentice in the 14th century and examines the case for development of the present form of the buildings in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Finally, it is noted that this new evidence encourages a re-examination of the argument that structural alignments and split-level retailing were indicators of pre-Plague pressure on street frontage which eased after the Black Death.     

Excavations at I Westgate Street,Gloucester, 1975

LIMITED excavation in Gloucester showed timber structures replacing stone in the late 4th century. The town centre was re-planned in the early 5th century, creating the line of medieval Westgate Street. Preserved organic levels of the 9th century indicate an agricultural economy with animal stabling in the town centre. 10th- to 12th-century levels were also excavated. Specialist reports are offered on Saxon and medieval pottery, seeds, textiles, wood and other materials.