Background

The site lies on the top of a gravel terrace, east of the floodplain of the River Severn.  The underlying solid geology consists of Triassic mudstones (including Keuper Marl, Dolomitic Conglomerate and Rhaetic) (Institute of Geological Sciences Ten Mile Map, 3D edition, Solid). It is to the north of the historic centre of Worcester, and to the west of the medieval Foregate/Tything suburb.  Mid-20th century office blocks and ground level car parking occupy the area.

It is probable that the Foregate Street/Tything area was fairly intensively farmed from an early period (Dalwood et al, 1997).  This is supported by the presence of limited prehistoric evidence found in the area, and specifically by the small quantities of lithics and Iron Age pottery recovered from the Kardonia factory site (CAS, 1995a, 4).  The line of Castle Street, (formerly Salt Lane) may preserve the alignment of a trackway dating from prehistoric times, and therefore the evidence recovered from this area may relate to activity along this trackway.

The Bishop of Worcester established the layout of the Foregate Street/Tything area c AD 1100, with regular burgage plots laid out at right angles to an axial road running north from the city (Baker and Holt 1990, 75-6; Baker 1996, 2).  Documentary sources indicate that the development site lies within an area that was covered by open fields and closes in the medieval period.  Only moderate quantities of medieval pottery were recovered from excavations in the immediate area, and these assemblages may have been deposited during manuring of the fields.  It was not therefore expected that well-preserved structures or significant deposits of medieval date would be discovered on the current development site.

In the mid 18^th century the area of the site of the Conder Building was a cherry orchard rented to local physician, Dr John Wall, (Whitehead, 1996, 8-9), and seems to have remained largely undeveloped until the 19^th century (Dalwood, 1994). 

The position of the trenches.

Trenches A and B (the pots marked on the plan were recovered subsequently to the main excavation)

Trench A

This was the eastern trench and measured 3.3 x 2.5 metres.  It was positioned to match the footprint of a proposed lift shaft of the renovated building.  In fact, the position of the lift shaft was slightly altered after the excavation and two large storage jars (56 and 59) were recovered as a result of this movement.

The upper Roman levels in trench A - looking east. An heterogeneous clay layer, 32, covers the entire trench and contains considerable amounts of charcoal in the centre of the photograph.  Cobbles, 3, are visible on the left and gravel surface 3 is in the top right-hand corner.

Trench A upper levels

The slab and underlying hardcore was removed by machine revealing a homogeneous dark loam deposit (layer 1).  This was also then removed by machine, in approximately 0.1 metre spits, to a depth of 0.80m below ground surface (20.73 OD).  The removal of layer 1 revealed a light mid-brown layer (9) in the western part of the trench.  When this was removed an almost level heterogeneous clay layer was visible over almost the entire area of the cutting.  Areas of this clay were assigned different record numbers (4,14,15,22 and 23) and all finds were recorded with those provenances.  However closer examination later showed that these areas of clay all formed part of one entity, which was subsequently assigned the record number 32.

Overlying layer 32, in the south-east corner of the trench was a thin (50 mm) layer of compact stone and gravel layer (2).  On northern edge of trench A was a patch of rounded cobbles (3).  These measured up to 150 mm on their longest axis and were bedded in a slight depression on red clay subdivision 15, of layer 32.  This feature was 70 mm in depth, measured 750 mm east-west and extended 350 mm south from northern edge of cutting.  Features 2 and 3 were then removed from above layer 32.

Trench A – the upper levels.  4, 14, 15, 22 and 23 all proved to be part of one single heterogeneous layer - 32.

Trench A lower levels

Layer 32 was removed revealing a completely different set of features overlying or cut into the surface of the natural sand.

Oven 44 was revealed against the northern edge of trench. Its uppermost element was a baked clay hearth-like layer (26) which disappeared under the eastern edge of trench A.  This feature had been baked hard by heat from above and formed a fairly even surface with crumbly edges against the natural sand which had been reddened by heat.  The clay had been laid in shallow pit 42 cut into the surface of the natural sand.  The surface of this feature had been subject to a heat of at least 400 degrees.  Archaeomagnetic analysis suggested a date range of 288-357AD for this feature.

After the initial stage of the field-work, this trench was slightly extended to the south and east by the contractors.  The eastward extension damaged a large Roman pot (56) which had been placed upright in the ground.  The southward extension exposed, but did not damage, this second pot (59) similarly placed.

These pots had been placed in pits which had been cut into the natural underlying sand, and of which they formed a lining, there being no visible cut for them. 

The more intact of the pots, 59, after reconstruction. Analysis of the fill of this pot discovered quantities of hammerscale.

It seems likely that the pots had been buried in the floor of a smithing workshop and had been used to quench hot metal.  This picture by Rob Williams shows a suggested method.

Information on archaeological work in Worcester City is available at the Worcester City Museums website