York Historic Environment Record

Excavations 30m north of Walmgate Bar to assess the date and development of the city defences around the Walmgate area. Based on the documentary references to Walmgate Bar (c.1155) and to construction work (c.1345) they are seen to develop between the 12th-14th century. Two 2x6m trenches were excavated either side of the wall; Trench 1 on the inside, Trench 2 on the outside. The evidence from Trench 2 the earliest deposit recorded was the clay natural into which were cut a series of features. These features consisted of stakes, post holes and slots. From the area immediately above the natural a silver styca of Eanred (810-840) was recovered. The earliest depoits were sealed by half a meter of buried soil, intern sealed by the rampart. A pit had been cut through the buried soil which contained a post c25x65cm and the associate4d fill contained 12th century pottery. The rampart overlaying the buried soil consisted of homogenous grey brown clay interleaved with lenses of orange sand and rubble. The pottery ranged from 10th/11th to 13th century date. A cobble surface edged with tile running for 2m parallel to the city wall was recorded. There was 13th century pottery associated with this feature. The function of this cobble and tile feature asnot clear. The cobble surface was overlain with bank deposits and into which were set the footings of the city wall within a trench cut into the rampart. This may imply they wee added to an earlier bank. The visible arches are part of the original foundations. The rampart has been truncated at the top, perhaps by as much as a meter. When this took place is not clear, but before they were exposed, the foundaitons would have been deeply set within the clay bank of the ramparts. The lowest parts of the rampart had been cut into in the 19th century for the cattle market pens. Derived from Barber, B. 1985. 'Underneath the Arches' in Interim 10/4 Museum accession code: 1985-86.20. SAM number: N YORKS 30 Interim : bulletin of the York Archaeological Trust 10.4/1985/38-41 Interim : bulletin of the York Archaeological Trust 11.1/1986/22-29 York Archaeological Trust annual report Library set lacks 18th report (1988/89) /1985-1986/APPENDIX I Yorkshire Philosophical Society : annual reports /1985/45