York Historic Environment Record

A watching brief for pile caps consisted of forty-four separate excavations were then undertaken to facilitate the construction of piling caps. These were of various dimensions but all were hand dug into the earth floor to a maximum depth of between 15.71m AOD (in No. 7) and 15.86m AOD (in No. 4). In 5 Monk Bar Court, large fragments of masonry where detected c.0.20m below the surface of the earth floor forming the remains of a wall or possibly its footing which consisted of two course of dressed, lime mortared limestone blockwork. The width of this structure was c.0.60m with its centre line running almost parallel and 2.50m from the outside face of tby a drain that he south-west wall of the property. There was a break in the line of approximately 0.50m with a modern service pipe running through it at right angles, 1.20m from its north-west end. The wall was cut by a drain that consisted of two walls of bricks laid onto tiles, forming a channel, and then capped with more bricks. The whole being bonded with a strong lime mortar. The top course of brickwork, which survived only at the north-west end of the run was found at 16.07m AOD. The limestone structure was present in 4 and 6 Monk Bar Court just under the surface of the earth floor. The structure was most substantial at No.4 where it consisted of at least three courses of limestone blockwork, but at No. 6 Monk Bar Court it consisted of one course of limestone blockwork which only appeared for c.2.30m on the same alignment and projecting from the south-east wall of the property. A watching brief during underpinning recorded post-medieval features, late medieval pottery and an undated limestone wall or footing. York Archaeological Trust [assessment & evaluation reports] 1996/ Report on an Archaeological Watching Brief at 4-7 Monk BAr Court, York/ YORYM 1996.401.