NHER 1163 (Monument record) - Medieval occupation site

1963. Excavation in Surrey Street on site of the Marks and Spencer's extension.
This site was chosen for excavation to test whether settlement in this part of the town was later than that south of the Purfleet, and to find out what form the settlement took.
Evidence for the earliest settlement on this site comprised a large clay-lined pit surrounded by hard burnt clay and slag, suggesting some sort of industrial activity. This activity was dated by pottery and small finds to the early 13th century. A fence running east-west is the only other structure from this period.
The next phase of activity on the site is characterised by the erection of a series of wattle fences, put up as property boundaries throughout the 14th century. This phase probably lasted for a century and during that time an occupation deposit over 1.2m (4 feet) deep accumulated. Features from this phase include a large oven with wattle roof and clay walls, large rubbish pits, cess pits and floors. The site was divided by a cobbled path, bounded by fences to the east and west. To the west appears to have been a tenement yard. To the east of the cobbled path the oven was covered with a mortar floor, perhaps for an outbuilding, bounded by fences. Following this sub-phase a large number of new wattle fences were erected, and a series of large post-holes were dug, some of which contained the remains of large posts which appeared to form part of a house or hut, much more solidly constructed than anything that had stood on the site previously. No floors or features were found inside this building, except for a small wooden cistern. A wooden bench was set directly into the earth and appears to have stood in the open since there are no floors associated with it. The large quantity of shoe leather, including soles and offcuts, around the bench, suggests a tentative interpretation as a cobbler's workbench. However, at the time of excavation no comparable benches were known and the excavator believed that a less specialised use for such a basic structure was more likely. The final sub-phase of this period was characterised by a rearrangement of property boundaries. A wooden barrel without a base probably acted as a rainwater butt. Many wooden objects including a garderobe seat were found in a layer of silt that had accumulated during this period.
The next major phase appears to have taken place in the 15th century and is marked by the replacement of fences with masonry walls which acted as property boundaries. Some walls from this phase may have been house walls. There was a notable absence of features contemporary with these walls which may reflect the fact that the site was in the back yards of tenements fronting onto Jew's Lane.
The post-medieval period saw a number of structures erected against one of the 15th century masonry walls, most using the wall as an integral part of their structure. A large clay-lined pit built against the western side of this wall is thought to have been a water cistern. Shortly after the construction of this cistern a large oven was built, which was soon superseded by a second oven. To the east of the wall lay another group of buildings and two hearths, probably related to the brick-built cottages which stood on the site until the early 20th century.
Information from (S1) see (S2) for further information.
During the excavations a round applique from a medieval pottery jug, depicting a knight mounted on a lion and brandishing a sword (KILLM : 1987.9.8) was recovered. See (S1), pages 209-210, figure 92, No. 20. It was originally identified as Grimston ware but has been re-examined by A. Rogerson and S. Anderson who agree that it was not manufactured in Grimston but probably made in Yorkshire.
E. Rose (NAU), Amended by M. Langham-Lopez (HES), 7 March 2013, A. Cattermole (King's Lynn UAD), 16 January 2019, and A. Beckham (HES), 4 January 2023.

1964. Excavation.
Further excavation on the site of Marks & Spencer's extension in Surrey Street showing the continued occupation into the 12th century to modern. The earliest levels are represented by wattle fences, which perhaps indicate property divisions, and small huts. There was no complete house plans recovered, however one building does show three different periods of construction in which there is slight changing in its position after each phase. A fence run the whole length of the trench and is at least 55 ft. long. The earliest layers from the late 12th- to the early 13th-centuries yielded round-bottomed cooking-pots in dark grey, gritty fabric, and East Anglian, Northern and Midland wares.
See (S3) for further information.
M. Langham-Lopez (HES), 11 July 2013.

1965. Stray find at unknown location and depth by contractors during piling work.
Copper alloy bowl and gold ring found.
E. Rose (NAU).

Rouen and South West French wares, Caen stone, leather finds; brick oven.
Site of Green Dragon Inn 1483.
See excavation report (S1) in file.
E. Rose (NAU).