York Historic Environment Record

The earliest activity on the site comprised five ditches, the most substantial of which was interrupted by a causeway. These may form parts of a Romano-British enclosure and field system. Nearer the line of the main road south from Eboracum some of the ditches were cut by rubbish pits; other pits may be associated with industrial activity, perhaps metalworking. The ditches and pits were backfilled with, and sealed by, an extensive mid 3rd century deposit which may represent rubbish brought out from the colonia and deliberately dumped to raise the ground level before the site became a cemetery. One cremation and 31 inhumations were recorded, the latter representing three phases. The first phase comprised four infants. Later a rectangular mausoleum was constructed; at least four burials were made within it and one or two outside it. After going out of use the mausoleum was robbed down to its foundations and in a third phase 21 burials were recorded, some of which cut the backfilled robber trenches of the mausoleum. This last phase of burials seems to date from the 4th century or later. Some of the skeletons were damaged by ploughing after the Roman period as the area was used for agriculture. Some medieval and later rubbish pits were dug behind the properties fronting on to Blossom Street and a number of medieval boundary ditches were found together with the base of an oven/kiln/corn drier. NMR sources: York Archaeological Trust annual report /1989-1990/27 York Archaeological Trust annual report /1990-1991/28