Site Event/Activity record ESF20214 - Excavation and Survey at the rear of the Guildhall

A survey was undertake in January 2003 to determine the nature and depth of the medieval footings for a section of the rear elevation of the medieval hall. The former council chanmber, late medieval kitchen and rear elevation of the hall were surveyed. Two test holes were excavated against the rear wall. Trench 1 was excavated at the base of the wall in the north courtyard. The bottom of the bonded flint was found at 0.22m below the existing ground level. The footing was 0.4m deep, the depth at which the geological chalk was encountered. A buried topsoil produced medieval pottery. Trech 2 was excavated in the central courtyard. The footings were deeper, in excess of 0.65m and the fill more structured, being made up of a sequence of layers of rammed flint and chalk with layers of rammed silt between. Geological chalk was not encountered in this test hole and the footing trench was cut into a sequence of silt layers (S1).