York Historic Environment Record

The basement of the propert had a floor of handmade bricks (1.80m below pavement level). Two new walls had been inserted at the front of the basement to support the recently strengthened steps above leading into the property from the pavement. The basement wall fronting the property on the street front was constructed fromlimestone blockwork and is thought to be of medieval origin, incorporated into the rebuild of 1837. Beyond this was a 1.40m wide basement passageway beneath the present pavement. This was partly bricked up and back-filled with stone, but these blockages were later removed and the passage emptied. Once the excavations for the drains were completed the street front wall of the basement was taken down and rebuilt on its old foundations. Excavation within the basement to locate the drain required the removal of 0.07m of brick floor and a c.0.20m thick layer of modern building debris a ceramic pipe encased in concrete was located. Below this pipe and beyond the backfill of the drain trench the soil remained relatively undisturbed. Excavation around the pipe from 0.68m to 1.20m below the level of the basement floor deposits consisted of friable black clayey silts with large quantities of oyster shell, animal bone, and charcoal flecks. There were also occasional patches of pebbles together with small fragments of limestone and a piece of leather