NHER 51497 (Monument record) - Medieval mass grave at Malthouse Road, Norwich

September 2004. Excavation.
In 2004 workers constructing the new Chapelfield development retrieved a human skull from the spoil of a pile trench. Subsequent archaeological investigations demonstrated that this skull had come from the deposits at the base of a well, which was found to contain further skeletal remains from a minimum of 17 individuals. Radiocarbon dates from the skeletal remains and the associated medieval pottery assemblage indicated that the remains had been deposited between the 12th and 13th century. The skeletal remains included six adults and 11 children and may represent a mass burial of victims of disease or famine in a relatively poor parish of the city. Alternatively, it is possible that these could be the remains of victims of civil unrest such as the persecution of the Jewish community in medieval Norwich but there are no signs of trauma that could have caused the death of these individuals. The remains of cats or kittens were also discovered that were certainly deposited prior to the burials and could be the result of local culling practices or to provide fur and meat. A large solution hollow was also identified and two struck flints and one burnt flint of prehistoric date were recovered from this feature.
See report (S1) for further details.
The archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2011.455).
S. Howard (NLA), 14 May 2010. Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 24 June 2020.

June 2011.
This site was the subject of a BBC documentary which revealed that five of the skeletons had DNA consistent with Jewish communities.
Further details are awaited.
See (S2) and (S3).
A. Cattermole (HES), 22 June 2011.