EYO828 - Victorian Sewer Micklegate
Type
WATCHING BRIEF
Location
Location | |
---|---|
Grid reference | SE 5974 5144 (point) |
Map sheet | SE55SE |
Unitary Authority | City of York, North Yorkshire |
Technique(s)
Organisation
Northern Archaeological Associates Ltd
Date
Aug - 2005
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Description
Watching Brief
In August 2005 Northern Archaeological Associates were commissioned by Costain
on behalf of Yorkshire Water to undertake an archaeological watching brief during
sewer repair works to the tunnelled Victorian sewer that runs below Micklegate Bar,
in the City of York. Two trenches were excavated through previously undisturbed
archaeological deposits, comprising road surfaces and road levelling layers,
relating to this historic principal route-way into the city of York
The results from both Trench 1 and Trench 2 showed a clear stratified sequence of
deposits and road surfaces from the Roman though to the post-medieval periods. At
a depth of 4.5m the tubular brick sewer was encountered overlain by some 2.5m of
sand and gravel. The earliest identified deposits related to construction of a Roman
road comprising a foundation layer of large cobbles, overlain by a compacted
metalled surface layer of gravel in a red clay matrix. The identification of the main
south-westerly road to Calcaria (Tadcaster) in this location, just outside the
defences for the Colonia at Eboracum, supports the notion of the medieval
Micklegate Bar being founded upon the site of the earlier Roman gateway in the
defences. A single Roman 'antoninianus ' coin from the period of the Gallic Empire
(AD 259-73), a fragment of tegula and a sherd of greyware were recovered from
residual medieval and modern contexts. The Roman occupation layers were overlain
a humic deposit, containing preserved organic material likely to have derived from
an out-door dung heap or from flood debris. This deposit contained six seeds from
the japanese-lantern plant (Physalis A lkegenki L ), the earliest archaeological record
of this species in northern England. Later medieval and post-medieval cobbled and
metalled road surfaces were also recorded, some with the addition of waste
industrial material for added durability. Several bricks and tiles were recovered, one
with the paw print from a small dog on its surface, mostly from within later medieval
and post-medieval road suifaces and levelling layers. Documentary evidence
records that the tunnelled sewer was probably constructed below Micklegate during
extensive sanitation works that took place across the city on the 1890s. The brickbuilt
sewer was seen to have been routed southwest beneath an archway cut through
the defences to the north of Micklegate Bai; heading out toward the middle of
Blossom Street.
Sources/Archives (1)
- --- SYO1033 Unpublished document: NAA. 2003. Victorian Sewer.
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Child/subsequent Site Events/Activities (2)
Record last edited
Feb 28 2014 3:49PM