Building record BEL 023 - Church of All Saints

Church of All Saints. Built C14(?). Consists of chancel, nave, N aisle, S porch, SW tower. Details in (S1)(S2). S3

2018: A programme of reordering work, including fitting of kitchen/café facilities, was carried out. Groundworks associated with this were monitored in order to record any archaeological deposits revealed, particularly during ground level reduction under the former pew bases. A small quantity of Late Saxon and early medieval pottery was recovered from an unstratified deposit but perhaps significantly, from the area of the N aisle which, until its addition in the 19th century, would have been outside of the medieval building. Other finds recovered were from disturbed, loose deposits likely to be associated with the Victorian restoration of the church. These were of post-medieval origin and included items such as coffin tacks, stained glass and roof-tiles linked to the church building or activities. The line of the former N wall was identified underlying the N arcade. A possible burial was cut by the arcade’s E brick pier. This feature was orientated S-N rather than W-E with the skull visible in the S end, but was not excavated to confirm whether it was a grave so as not to unnecessarily disturb what lay below the required formation level. In the nave of the church, outcrops of solid chalk, faced clay and mortar may be the remnants of earlier floor surfaces and other structural elements of the church, but none survived adequately to allow a confident interpretation.
Included in the Proceedings of the Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and History annual round up of individual finds and discoveries for 2018 (S4). (S5)