LONDON ARCHAEOLOGIST 1986 vol 5.10

CITY OF LONDON Excavations by the Museum of London, Department of Urban Archaeology.

Broad Street Station, Liverpool Street (Broadgate development) TO 3304 8167 (D. Malt).

Excavations in the SW corner of the site were completed in April, revealing considerable dumping over the marsh deposits and producing a section through the E bank of the Walbrook. The bank in this part of the site was constructed of compacted gravel, clay and building rubble. Tentative dating evidence from ceramic material places its construction to 180-230. Some 400 post-medieval burials were excavated from an area within the boundaries of the new churchyard, founded in 1569 by the city to relieve the congestion occurring in parish burial grounds. The burials were found in high density - some 8 per m3. The cemetery was used up to at least 1720. Primary burials were mostly uncoffined but a large proportion of the later inhumations were coffined burials. A large brick vault contained six members of the Jenkes family, in lead coffins with highly decorated wooden inner coffins. dating from 1686 to 1714. Other finds included two Roman hipposandals and good groups of post-medieval pottery.

76 Cannon Street TQ 3258 8092 (A. Stephenson).
An excavation c 2.5m (8ft) square, funded by Peachey Properties, took place during September-November. The earliest deposits were of the stream-bed of the Lower Walbrook at a level of 3.10m (10ft 2in) OD. In the 1st c the E bank was consolidated with a N-S aligned revetment. Land to the W was subsequently reclaimed by further piling and dumping of organic material and brickearth to receive three successive Roman buildings, associated with glass- and iron-working. A 4th c timber box well cut the last of these and the 3m (10ft) of Roman stratification were sealed by 0.5m (lft 8in) of dark earth filled pits. A large group of mid-late 4th c pottery was recovered.

52 Carter Lane TQ 3182 8109 (B. Watson).
The excavation, sponsored by Waterglade International Holdings Ltd, took place in September and October. The N side of a large, truncated. ditch (2.6m. 8.5ft, deep) aligned NW to SE (the same alignment as the oblique N boundary of Nos 52 and 54/56 Carter Lane) was recorded. It can be estimated from test pits on the adjoining properties (PAL 86) that the ditch is about 13m (43ft) wide. The finds from the primary backfill of the ditch suggest it is of Norman or 12th c date; it may therefore be that of Montfitchet's Tower. The S part of the site was occupied by the foundations of a later 17th c building, fronting onto Carter Lane. Internal part to this building was a small, rectangular, brick built icehouse, with a vaulted roof.

10-13 Carthusian Street TQ 3206 8188 (D. Bentley).
A watching brief was carried out in July. It produced evidence of 13th c occupation, demonstrating the extent to which London's suburbs had grown by this date (the site lies 450m. ¼ mile, N of the City wall at Aldersgate). The earliest activity identified was a deposit of heavily pitted early medieval agricultural or garden soil, over which a large building provisionally of 13th c date was erected, with walls founded on arches of chalk and flint. This building was extended with the construction of shallow foundations extending 6m (20ft) to the W; associated chalk-lined pits and a well were found. The well was partially rebuilt, using carved medieval stonework which may have come from the chalk founded building.
In the 16th c a replacement brick building was erected, using the earlier foundations and following the same property boundaries. It too underwent development and extension to the W over what had become a large metalled yard. The associated rubbish pits produced many wine jars, bottles, cups and plates, and reinforces the 17th c documentary evidence that shows this to be the site of the Red Lion Inn which fronted onto Aldersgate Street 20m (66ft) to the E.

16 Coleman Street TQ 3259 8147 (C. Spence).
During February a watching brief was undertaken during ground works. Natural gravel was truncated to a level of 8.95m (29ft 4in) O.D. over the whole site; however, a number of pits were recorded. The earliest were rubbish pits of early 2nd c date. In the N-E corner of the site was a square wooden structure set within a pit, with an external clay packing. It was backfilled in the 3rd c and disturbed by a mid 4th c NW-SE gully. Pits of the 11th c to 17th c were recorded. A possible post-medieval cellar sequence was recorded at the E site limit.

3-7 Dowgate Hill TQ 3257 8088 (C. Maloney).
A watching brief of exploratory pits prior to refurbishment by Taylor Woodrow took place in February-March, revealing internal rooms of a heated Roman building. In one pit a tesselated floor was recorded, associated with a wall rendered with opus signinum and faced with thin slabs of Purbeck marble. In a nearby pit an internal corner of a room with a hypocaust was located. Two walls survived up to 2.45m (8ft) in height, composed of tiles rendered with opus signinum, the bottom of the wall being lined with vertically set tiles. It was constructed on a concrete floor onto which pilae had been set and above which lay another concrete floor. In other pits a collapsed tile wall, ragstone walls and concrete floors were recorded.

17-21 Farringdon Street TQ 3165 8132 (P. Durnford).
Finds of the Roman, medieval and post medieval periods testify to the continuing interest shown in this valley site from an early period. Although a number of possibly medieval timbers and wall fragments were observed and plotted, only tentative building lines can be suggested. The earlier course of the river Fleet may have been further to the E, hence the presence of typical waterfront dumps and possible revetment features in the W of the site. Brick floor and wall fragments, together with several portions of post medieval drain or pit fill from 17th c contexts were also recorded. A drain or channel may formerly have existed in the centre of the site, feeding down the Fleet.

94-97 Fenchurch Street TQ 3345 8110 (S. Riviere).
Excavation took place here between October and December. The earliest feature on the site was a 26m (85ft) long Roman ditch, partly with the 'ankle-breaking' profile suggestive of a military function. It had a fairly short life and was backfilled and levelled over at one time, with the first indications of several flimsy timber structures sealing the levelling. These structures and a large domestic oven were themselves sealed by a further levelling up for the first of the more substantial buildings. These buildings, Building 1 and 2, were single storey, with wattle and daub walls supported by clay sills and roofed with thatch, and were confined to the E half of the site. To the W was an extensive external gravel area, possibly a courtyard, which covered an area at least 17 x 16m (56 x 53ft). The two buildings were completely destroyed by a major fire, probably Boudiccan. The new buildings and streets were deliberately laid out on a new alignment, at 45o to the preceding buildings, employing slightly different building techniques but producing basically timber, with wattle and daub, walls and thatched roofs. Each was subdivided into several rooms and was altered internally during its lifetime. They had in plan the shape of a fairly typical strip building and appeared to front onto the street running to the S and E. To the W of these buildings lay a street composed of bands of gravel heavily compacted to form a smooth surface with a slight camber. The sides were revetted with timber, and a succession of roadside ditches ran along both sides. The street was resurfaced at least three times and was in use well into the 2nd c AD. It must have met the street on which the buildings were fronting at an angle of less than 90°, suggesting that the street found on the excavation may have been only a side street. Any possible later Roman activity was destroyed by several 12th c and later rubbish pits, wells and three chalk lined pits.

Guildhall House, 81-87 Gresham Street TQ 3251 8131 (K. Steedman).
The excavation, funded by the Corporation of London, took place between December 1985 and March 1986. The earliest features were the robbed remains of 1st c Roman buildings in the centre of the site and to the W (on a slightly different alignment). Site-wide dumping of re-deposited brickearth followed. Truncation by the basements of the demolished building removed most deposits above this horizon. A sequence of surfaces of 1st-3rd c date surviving in the centre of the site were assumed to be associated with robbed structural features. They maintained the earlier alignment, as did a series of later robbing cuts to the E, the most significant of which represented a 1.5m (5ft) wide wall at least 16m (53ft) long (robbed in the 4th c). The sequence in the centre was capped by a 1.4m (4ft 7in) wide tile wall which ran NW-SE. Additions were made to its S side, the latest of which comprised a three-aisled building possibly 10m (33ft) long with two rows of large posts. It was aligned with the features to the W. rather than the large wall to the E. A layer of dark soil of 4th c dale overlay some of the robbed remains. Pits of late Saxon date contained 4 bone trial pieces, one inscribed with a name, perhaps the artist's. Most of the site had pitting of 11th/l2th c date succeeded for the most part by chalk or masonry walls on the modern N-S orientation, contrary to that of the Roman features. A well-built 12th c cellared feature, 1.6 x 1.2m (5ft 3in x 4ft), and several cess-pits survived. There were no medieval surfaces.

Leadenhall Court; 91-100 Gracechurch Street; 1-6 Leadenhall Street; 2-12 Whittington Avenue TQ 3340 8110 (S. O'Connor Thomson & G. Milne).
From October 1985 to September 1986 extensive excavations followed preliminary work reported in LA 5, no 6, 158. The project, generously funded by the Legal and General Assurance Society and HBMC, was designed to examined a large area over and immediately N of the site of the suggested Roman basilica. The eleven trenches investigated below basements of the standing buildings on the S side of the site were supervised by P Wootton, and the three large external areas were supervised by T Brigham (S) G Brown (W) and G Milne (N).
Evidence was found for the initial clearance of tree cover, also quarry pits, ditches, a building with earth-fast posts and a thick fire-debris horizon. All were sealed by six brickearth-walled buildings, pottery from which has been dated to c AD 60-80; the associated pits, wells, alleys and middens were also excavated. All were swept away by a major redevelopment of the site which saw the introduction of a large masonry public building extending beyond the S, W and E limits of excavation. A well-made road lay to its N, with brickearth and timber buildings beyond that. Major structural modifications to the masonry building were recorded, as was the sequence of development in many of the rooms, together with the complex pattern of demolition and robbing. The Roman finds were typical of a Roman civilian settlement: nothing of a military character has yet been identified on the site. There was much Roman pottery from early Flavian to 4th c in date, including a great range of imports. There are very good examples of unusual types, for example hollow-foot amphora, Rhineland mortaria, and glazed ware from central Gad and S-E England. Glass vessels included chariot and athletes cups and a double-handed cup (scyphos). Several iron water-pipe collars were recovered.
The road was resurfaced nine times, but a thick layer of silt sealed the latest surface, into which a series of Saxon pits and other features were cut. Much structural evidence survived of the 15th c Leadenhall market, as the trenches straddled the N part of the quadrangular market building, locating its truncated foundations. A fragment of the exterior wall of the W range survived to a height of 11.2m (37ft) between modern buildings. It displayed evidence for an open ground floor for trade and, above, two floors for storage of wheat. Cellars built on the site of the N wing, after its demolition in 1795, incorporated over 100 dressed mouldings and blocks from the superstructure of the building. This information, coupled with the large body of documentary/ pictorial records preserved in the Guildhall, will make possible a detailed reconstruction of this unique medieval building.

2-5 Minories TQ 3363 8116 (I. Blair).
In the basement of No. 3, a trench 6 x 2.5m (20 x 8ft) was excavated over a two-week period before demolition. The earliest sequence, of Roman date, comprised a series of brickearth quarries, up to 2.5m (8ft) deep, which bottomed out at 3.50m 81.5ft) beneath the basement slab. Following their backfilling and consolidation, the area seems to have been given over to open fields during the medieval period and to have been extensively ploughed. This was evident by a well-sorted group of level-surfaced layers which extended across the entire trench. Intruding through the plough horizons was a large circular cut c 1.70m (5.5ft) in diameter which seems to have been a bell-casting pit, and contained much smashed clay bell mould and some 14th c pottery.

32-4 Mitre Street TQ 3343 8116 (S. Riviere).
A watching brief, funded by Speyhawk, was carried out in March and April, in an area which previously had been part of the graveyard of St Katherine Cree Church. The trench was 15 x 3.5m (49 x 1l.5ft) with a survival of 6m (20ft) of stratigraphy. The natural brickearth was sealed by a series of patchy Roman surfaces and cut by a possible quarry pit, sealed in turn by a series of homogenous dumps. Cutting into the dumps were burials, in stone and mortar cists, probably a continuation of the late Saxon graveyard excavated to the east in LEA 84 (see 1985 LA summary) which were themselves disturbed by the construction of massive chalk foundations for the wall of the nave of Holy Trinity Priory. The ground level to the S of the nave rose, and further burials continued to be made. Three very large buttresses, (one of which was itself later enlarged) were added to the S of the S wall. Burials continued to be made, to give a rise of 2.6m (8.5ft) to the destruction horizon of the Priory from the construction level. Parts of the superstructure of the Holy Trinity Priory must have remained standing in the late 16th c. as a new N-S wall was constructed to abut the S wall of the nave, probably forming the new E boundary for the graveyard for the parish church of St Katherine Cree which lay to the S. The area continued to be used as a graveyard to the present day, with burials being made in wooden and lead coffins and the ground level rising steadily. The area was sealed by a layer of top soil.

49-53 Moorgate, 72-73 Coleman Street TQ 3267 8147 (C. Spence).
Excavation took place between March and May funded by Wates City Ltd. Although most of the site was truncated by modern basements, a small area to the NE of the site retained horizontal stratigraphy. The natural gravels sloped down in this corner, but were truncated elsewhere on the site to 9.40m (30ft l0in) O.D. The earliest activity on the site was the cutting of a gravel quarry pit, backfilled in the early 2nd c. It was immediately S of a metalled surface, possibly an alley or road, of the same date. In the NE corner of the site the downward slope of natural was levelled and a brickearth building constructed during the early 2nd c. The structure had at least three rooms and a narrow corridor; one room had a gravelled floor whilst the others used brickearth. The internal walls were of wattle and daub construction. The building, and an associated external area, with a wooden box-section drain and boundary fence, were occupied for a relatively short period as stages of disuse were dated to the mid 2nd c. By the late 2nd c a substantial NW-SE fence alignment ran across this area; to be followed in the early 3rd c by an E-W tile pathway. Late 3rd c dumping completed the horizontal sequence. A large number of truncated pits were recorded, with a date range of early 2nd c to c 1500. Of note were two very large square rubbish pits and a smaller wattle lined pit, probably at the rear of a property fronting Coleman Street, all dated to the 12th c. A medieval chalk well, backfilled in the 18th c, and other post-medieval activity completed the sequence. Finds included a notable group of post-medieval metalwork.

54-62 New Broad Street TQ 3304 8154 (I. Blair).
During a ten-week period between January and March, seven N-S trenches were excavated across the line of the City ditches. The work was generously funded by Haslemere Estates. The earliest features, which were cut into natural gravels, were a series of stream and drainage channels running W towards the Walbrook. Following their natural silting and consolidation during the 2nd c, the ground level was raised across the N half of the site by 1.2m (4ft) or more, with the large-scale dumping of mainly gravel-based make-ups. Running parallel to, and lying 6m (20ft) from, the external face of the City wall (which formed the S boundary of the site) were the truncated remains of the associated early 3rd c V-cut defensive ditch. Cut into its berm was a solitary grave of Roman date which contained a single well-preserved male skeleton.
During the 12th c the ground level was raised by a further 1.50m (5ft). The absence of any clear sign of a medieval ditch cut and the presence of a series of substantial dumped make-ups (which were waterlogged at the time of deposition) suggest that the marshy area around Moorfields precluded the cutting of a ditch during this period. Instead, it seems likely that a N bank was raised in order to delineate the line of the outer defensive circuit.
In the 16th c. a massive 50ft-wide City ditch (which survived to a depth of 2m (6.5ft), and extended E-W across the entire site) was cut into the reclamation dumps. The ditch was relatively short-lived and was backfilled by the middle of the 17th c. The fill contained a fine 16th c intaglio ring (see L.A. 5 no. 8 (1985) 192). Following its consolidation, a series of linear E-W horncore-filled land drains were cut into its uppermost fills. A large assemblage of 17th c pottery included delftware, Saintonge ware, bellarmines and other imported wares. The later encroachment of properties across the N edge of the ditch in the 18th c was indicated by a group of brick-lined wells and drains.

9 Northumberland Alley TQ 3347 8103 (A. B. Thomas).
In July and August excavations funded by R. J. Kiln Co Ltd were carried out in the basement of a standing building. Excavations revealed a sequence of gulley and ditch activity dated to the early Roman period, including a major NNE-SSW linear V-shaped ditch with an associated post pit alignment along its E side. Later in the Roman period a gravel strip and post-built structure orientated NNE-SSW was recorded across the site. They were sealed by major dumps and later Roman pits, including a large assemblage of late 3rd/mid 4th c pottery. Due to modern basements, medieval and later periods were reduced to truncated remains of a chalk lined well and a square cut pit. One pit produced a bone ? medieval coin balance.

7-8 Plumtree Court, 26-30 Holborn Viaduct TQ 3155 8150 (P. Durnford).
Evidence ranging in date from the medieval to the post medieval period was recorded. The absence of finds and structures from the Roman period was marked. No Roman pottery was recovered and there was no sign of gravels or metalling which might be interpreted as the Roman road expected in the NW corner. The medieval remains consisted of several wall fragments and one or two cut features associated with medieval pottery. Post-medieval structures in the form of walls, drains, floors and vaults were also recorded. In addition, the building lines of pre-Viaduct structures were clearly seen on the W side of the site, with associated drains running down to the N. Unfortunately, lack of time prevented recording of these structures. Traces of a timber structure, recorded on the N edge of the site, also appeared to be post medieval in date. A wide strip of greenish organic material, observed running N-S down from the NE corner, may be part of the original course of the river Fleet. Organic deposits were also seen in one section of a machine cut in the extreme SE corner, but no trace of timber revetments was recorded.

St Albans House, Wood Street TQ 3228 8125 (P. Chitwood & J. Hill).
Following the demolition of a post-war office building, an archaeological investigation between April and July, sponsored by Eagle Star Insurance, recorded 3 - 5m (10 - 16ft) of stratigraphy in two discrete areas, separated by a double basement. In the E site an area of 300m2 (3300sq ft) (area A) was excavated. Natural at 11.3-11.5m (37-38ft) OD was immediately overlain by 1st c structures. Following destruction by fire, and extensive quarrying, these buildings were replaced by a sequence including an opus signinum floored cellar associated with clay and timber wall lines. Much of the area appears to have been external with only the backs of buildings lying to the S intruding into the area of excavation. Some later 2nd c surfaces survived, slumped over pit fills, but generally mid 2nd c Roman deposits were sealed by dark organic dumps and considerable pitting. A substantial (125m3, 44,000cu ft) quarry pit containing llth/l2th c pottery and a bone trial-piece was sealed by a ragstone foundation that still observed the Roman alignment. This was in turn cut by a 12th c foundation which ran at right angles to Wood St. and disregarded Roman alignments. Some surfaces associated with this later foundation were recorded to its S. To the NE medieval timber structures with patchy floorings were encountered.
To the W of the double basement an area of 75m2 (800sq ft) was excavated (area X), and a similar area recorded in section (area B). Over natural, which was encountered at a level c 0.50m (lft 8in) higher than on the E area, dumps and substantial pits analogous to the early activity in area A, were sealed by make-ups and surfaces, one of which was tessellated, associated with a ragstone dwarf wall. A substantial portion of the scorched and collapsed timber and clay superstructures of the wall was recorded in situ. Associated pottery suggested a 2nd c date. Later Roman and medieval horizontal stratigraphy was destroyed by extensive pitting.

The City Wall at St Alphage Garden TQ 3245 8162 (A. Westman).
An archaeological examination of a standing monument at St Alphage Garden EC2, formerly London Wall, was undertaken in March and September for the Corporation of London. The work included photogrammetry by the Department of Civil Engineering of the City University. The monument formed part of the NW sector of the city wall. The earliest elements were identified as two phases of Roman defences: the inner face of the N wall of the 2nd c fort, reinforced when this wall was incorporated in the defensive circuit built around the Roman city in about AD 200. The dilapidated defences were then partly refaced to the N. This coarse refacing was slightly out of alignment with both the existing and with subsequent defences and may have been associated with the foundation on the city wall of the church of St Alphage, probably in the 11th c. The N wall of the church was rebuilt decoratively in the late 14th c. The adjoining city wall was reconstructed at least twice, culminating in brick crenellations. dated to 1477 by documentary evidence. The church was dismantled in 1535-6, when the dedication was transferred to a larger building to the SE. Remaining masonry was partly incorporated in walls of adjacent premises and was exposed and consolidated in 1951-3.

St. Botolph, Aldgate TQ 3358 8122 (C. Maloney).
During a watching brief in June and July - for which access was granted by the Rector and Parish Council of St. Botolph, Aldgate - excavations alongside the E boundary wall of the churchyard revealed that it was built on an earlier stone wall. It was composed of coursed limestone and yellow sandstone blocks on a foundation of sandstone and chalk. Above a moulded string course, the face of the wall had been set back. At least 11m (36ftf of its length and l.1m (3'/2ft) of its height survives. Although all deposits relating to the wall had been destroyed, it can be dated to the 15th c, and it identified as the W wall of the Crowne Inn, a property dating back to the 12th c.

St Margaret's Rectory, St Olave's Court, Ironmonger Lane TQ 3254 8123 (E. Shepherd).
A watching brief and small area excavation were undertaken between October 1985 and June 1986, funded by the Church Commissioners. In the SW corner of the site natural gravels were quarried in the mid/later 1st c, prior to a sequence of Roman clay and timber buildings. These apparently fronted onto a road running E-W to the S and had an external area to the N. A severe fire during the 2nd c was indicated. A similar sequence was evident over the rest of the site, although occupation was apparently less intensive to the N.
Later deposits were truncated by church structures. At the S end of the site was a small church (the surviving nave measuring c 7.50 x 8.00m, 24ft 7in x 26ft 3in) of 9th-11th c date on constructional details, with Roman tiles incorporated as quoins. The church was enlarged and altered throughout the medieval period, and was burnt down in the Great Fire of 1666. It was rebuilt in 1673-76 by Sir Christopher Wren, who added the surviving tower.

56-60 St. Mary Axe TQ 3336 8134 (C. Maloney).
One section was recorded at the E end of the site after the walls of a basement had been removed. It revealed a thick band of mortar and ragstone fragments, together with chalk, opus signinum and tile fragments. This is identified as the N-W extremities of Bastion 9, or possibly material associated with its destruction, since it was sealed by 16th c deposits.

Stothard Place, Spital Square TQ 3341 8186 (C. Sparey Green).
Excavations and a watching brief funded by County and District Properties Ltd. were conducted between April and July. The site lay 0.5 km (1/3 mile) from Bishopsgate, immediately S of the site of St Mary Spital, and in an area known to contain Roman cemeteries. The earliest activity was represented by a shallow brickearth quarry containing 2nd c material, to the W of which lay three wood-lined tanks set in the natural brickearth and containing occupation debris of similar date. Thereafter a group of between seven and nine extended and oriented inhumation burials in wooden coffins was bounded on the N and E by at least four phases of ditches; both burials and enclosure dating to the late 3rd or 4th c. One burial contained thirteen glass beads. In the early medieval period a timber structure 6.5 x 7m (21 x 23ft) was surrounded by a complex of small pits and then succeeded by a group of large cesspits. In the late medieval period the W side of the site was occupied by a barrel-lined well and fragmentary gravel footings of timber buildings; the E side by cesspits. The E wall of an early post-medieval brick building had been incorporated in the rear of the existing E frontage of Bishopsgate, the coursed brick and chalk footings of which had previously been wrongly identified in the 19th c as of Roman site. This wall had later been incorporated into the terrace of the 18th c houses forming the S side of Stothard Place.
Thirty six fragments of moulded stone reused in the footings of this building included a richly moulded 14th c traceried and glazed window fragment, possible from the Priory and Hospital of St Mary; fragments of a plainer 14th c window, thirteen fragments from a 16th c oriel window and a second, plainer, 16th c window.

Sunlight Wharf TQ 3210 8089 (K. Tyler).
During July and August L.E.P. Ltd. sponsored the excavation of five areas at the N limit of the Sunlight Wharf building site, S of The Salvation Army World Headquarters. In the two W areas the SW corner of a substantial piece of Roman masonry was discovered. The element aligned E-W measured c 17m (56ft) E-W and 2m (6.5ft) N-S. The element aligned N-S measured c 2.8m (9ft) N-S and 6m (20ft) E-W. The masonry feature was built on a rammed chalk platform supported by a series of dumps and vertically piled timbers. The area E of this contained a masonry feature aligned N-S, butted by a masonry feature aligned E-W. They were constructed upon the same sort of platform, dumps and piles as the masonry feature to the W. The two areas to the N of this contained platform, dumps and piles only, with an isolated tile setting for a wooden pile. Dating evidence for the Roman features above will be obtained from dendrochronological samples of the piles. These Roman features may align with those recorded in 1981 at excavations at St. Peter's Hill; masonry recorded in 1961-2 during the construction of the Salvation Army Headquarters; and masonry recorded in 1841 by Roach Smith between the foot of Lambeth Hill and Queenhithe.
Post-Roman features included a series of N-S and E-W aligned masonry features at the N limit of the excavation. To their S a series of deposits interpreted as road surfaces aligned E-W were recorded. Still further S a substantial masonry feature aligned E-W was recorded. This series of features has been interpreted as buildings to the N and S sides of a road.

19 Throgmorton Avenue121 Austin Friars EC2 TQ 3289 8141 (P. Durnford).
A limited excavation funded by MEPC was carried out in the S half of this large site from July to September. A short watching brief was carried out immediately afterwards when the piling contractors were on site. McGee (Demolition) provided help throughout the excavation. The main objective was to try to establish the line of the original channel of a Walbrook tributary which was known to have crossed the area. It was predicted that the Walbrook should traverse the SW quarter of the site from NE to SW. The depth of the double basements in the N of the site determined the eventual size of excavation. In the S half of the site, massive Victorian foundations also dictated the areas to be excavated. As modern footings crossed the site, E-W, three discrete areas of excavation were created.
Up to 2m (6.5ft) of stratigraphy was encountered over the S area of the site. Substantial remains of a timber revetment and part of a wooden trackway were uncovered. It proved possible to plot the probable alignment of the Walbrook tributary in the early Roman period. Finds included much Roman vessel glass, a group of Roman leather shoes and sandals, and a Roman wooden writing tablet in very good condition with writing (yet to be deciphered) on it.

34 Watling Street TQ 3243 8103 (M. Samuel).
A two-week programme of recording determined the position of a large undercroft known to exist at 34 Watling Street. Prior to partial destruction when Queen Victoria Street was laid out in the 19th c, it had been recorded to a high standard, but it was unclear how these records related to the single vault springer still visible. Study revealed that plastered recesses in the W wall of the modern cellar corresponded to window splays in the old drawings, making possible their orientation. This reveals that the undercroft possibly survives extensively under both Watling Street to the N and Queen Victoria Street to the S, and that the floor of the Victorian cellar lies on top of a thick accumulation of undercroft floors. Stylistically, the details of the vault suggest a date range of 1350-1500.

LAARC Archive

Beaufort House, Middlesex Street, E1 TQ 33630 81330 (I Blair)
Natural gravels and gravelly brickearth were overlaid by clayey and silty marsh deposits, probably of Roman and early medieval date. Widespread and thick deposits resembling garden soil probably represented the Great Garden of Holy Trinity Priory which was located here from the 13th c. Above this lay soil and building debris of post-medieval date, probably indicating a change of land use after the Dissolution. This property passed into the possession of the De Vere family, Earls of Oxford and two substantial buildings are documented from the early 17th c onwards. The remains of a brick-lined well and cellars or wall foundations of brick and chalk were all that was observed for this period, succeeded by the foundations of the modern building.

36–38 Botolph Lane, EC3 TQ 33030 80755 (I Blair)
Pits, probably medieval and post-medieval in date, were observed below the basement slab. They included chalk-walled and one brick-lined cesspits; other chalk walls were also noted.

8–14 Brushfield Street, E1 TQ 33410 81740 (C Maloney and C Sparey-Green)
Natural brickearth was overlaid by a dump of clay dated to the late Roman period, followed by more dumping in the late 14th c and in the late 17th - early 18th c. This was capped by the York stone basement floor of the standing building.

62–64 Cornhill, EC3 TQ 31910 81790 (F M Meddens)
Archaeological investigations were carried out between February and May 1986, funded by Greycoat Group plc. Of the five trenches opened up, three revealed up to 4m of stratigraphy.
The site was situated near the intersection of the N-S Roman road along present-day Bishopsgate with the Roman road passing E-W along the N side of the second basilica complex, roughly across the present Cornhill. No remains of either of these roads were uncovered. A large quarry had been dug in order to extract both brickearth and gravel. It appears likely to have been located in an open yard area.
The heavily truncated remains of several mudbrick structures were located. The robbed foundations of a number of stone buildings were present; in one area, three phases of stone construction appear to have been robbed in the Roman period. The last of these consisted of a building with an apsidal end, which would have fronted onto the main N-S road.
Elsewhere what may have been a broken crucible with quantities of liquid mercury rested on a hearth set on a floor which was sealed by a dump of Roman date. Where the Roman deposits were not truncated by later developments they were sealed by a mixed layer of what appeared to be garden soil and destruction rubble. This suggests that in the immediate post-Roman period the site was abandoned.
When the site was occupied again the evidence suggests an open area, possibly at the back of properties or in a courtyard space, primarily employed for rubbish disposal from early medieval times to the 16th c. It appears that from the 16th or 17th c to the late 19th/early 20th c buildings occupied the site, of which basement and cellar remains were uncovered. Fragments from two Roman Purbeck marble mortars, several medieval honestones and a quantity of post-medieval glass which included both bottles and phials were recovered.

Great St Thomas Apostle (N side), junction with Queen Street, EC4 TQ 32440 80940 (C Maloney)
In this trench dug in the modern pavement, human long bones were observed, apparently in backfill-type material: they are considered to be a disturbed part of the graveyard of St Thomas Apostle. At the same depth a possible E-W chalk foundation was observed.

Jubilee Gardens, Houndsditch, EC3 TQ 33330 81460 (C Maloney)
Natural brickearth was cut by shallow brickearth extraction pits, probably Roman in date. Their infill, which contained wall plaster, was sealed by a metalled surface. This surface may be the remains of an access road to the known Roman cemetery along Bishopsgate. At the N end of the site 4th c deposits, which may have formed part of the cemetery, were recorded. Above the Roman deposits, thick soil horizons developed, probably representing the agricultural use of the site until the late medieval period. Two large fragments of crucible with slag adhering to them were recovered; they are date to mid-14th - late 16th c. Numerous cellar walls and floors were recorded, many of which seemed to be post-Great Fire in date; these were infilled with modern material, presumably in preparation for the Gardens.

Long Lane (E end, S side), EC1 TQ 32070 81825 (D Bentley)
Near the junction of Long Lane with Cloth Street, banded gravels were observed about 0.6m below ground level; they were probably the medieval or post-medieval metalled surfaces of Long Lane.

1–6 Lombard Street, EC3 TQ 32710 81060 (C Maloney)
Engineers’ holes for replacement foundations in the light well were examined during refurbishment. A depth of 2m of archaeological deposits was observed in section, half of which appeared to be the fill of a feature cutting the natural gravels. The deposits were not datable.

118 Minories, EC3 TQ 33640 80920 (P McCulloch)
Archaeological investigation funded by Wimpey Property Holdings consisting of five testpits, one controlled excavation (approximately 10m x 10m) and a watching brief were carried out between October and December 1986 in advance of redevelopment.
Natural deposits were truncated by a large N-S medieval ditch which was backfilled and recut probably in the 17th c to accommodate a line of stakes. The fill of the second cut was itself truncated by a series of features which were succeeded by a humic ground surface. Later dumping and cut features were surmounted by another ground and dumping surface through which a large trench was cut. A timber structure housing a brick furnace was discovered in the trench. Backfilling over the destroyed furnace allowed another cut and fill phase.
Later shallow brick footings indicated the presence of at least one structure immediately preceding the Victorian basement of the latest building.

14–16 Mansell Street, E1 TQ 33720 81200 (I Blair)
A deposit of mortar and building debris, dated to the post-medieval period, was recorded.

Automated Public Convenience, south side of St Paul’s Choir School, New Change, EC4 TQ 32160 81110 (C Maloney)
The lowest recorded feature was a cut feature, sealed by a possible gravel surface, succeeded by a ragstone wall foundation. A chalk structure was also recorded.

1–19 Poultry, 2–22 Queen Victoria Street, EC2 TQ 32600 81110 (C Maloney and C Sparey-Green)
Roman timbers and waterlogged deposits typical of those found in the Walbrook valley, were recorded in two engineers’ test pits. The findings are to be incorporated in the report on the major excavation later on the site by MoLAS, ONE94.

1–3 Snow Hill, EC1 TQ 31740 81480 (C Maloney and I Blair)
A number of pits, possibly for quarrying, were cut into the natural gravel and are dated mainly to the 1st and 2nd c, with one to the mid 3rd/4th c. In one section pits was succeeded by two ‘plaster’ burials dating to the 4th c.

Liverpool Street Station Booking Hall, Liverpool Street, EC2 TQ 33150 81570 (C Sparey-Green)
Natural gravels were overlaid by disturbed or redeposited brickearth above which lay a metalled surface, possibly an E-W Roman road, with Roman occupation debris to its N at a similar level. The metalled surface was cut by a large feature, probably a pit, and the site then covered by a thick dark deposit which contained medieval material. This was succeeded by a N-S chalk wall foundation and, to its W, an E-W brick wall on a foundation of chalk and flint. Truncating the post-medieval brick wall was 19th c brickwork which is assumed to be part of the underground railway tunnel.

22 Wormwood Street, EC2 TQ 33190 81450 (A Westman)
The back wall of the cellar of the standing building was found to be the City Wall with a 19th c refacing, perhaps of the original core, which reused original stones, occasional Roman tile and bricks older than the 19th c. The inner face seemed to have been cut back and refaced in one operation in more than one property, and the cellar and superstructures built immediately afterwards.

9–10 Cutler Street, E1 TQ 33410 81420 (S Cole)
A watching brief of October 1986–January 1897 revealed one crushed chalk inhumation, not datable, cut into natural brickearth together with evidence of others disturbed by modern building works. Testpits and ground reduction showed extensive post-medieval pits sealed by a brick floor and foundations for the standing building.