Ipswich UAD child record record IPS 1329 - Carmelite Friary Sacristy

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Summary

Reconstructed Carmelite Friary Sacristy

Location

Grid reference Centred TM 1632 4448 (7m by 8m)
Map sheet TM14SE
Civil Parish IPSWICH, IPSWICH, SUFFOLK

Map

Type and Period (2)

Full Description

The sacristy was added onto the south side of the choir wall. It was a rectangular chamber, 4.5m from north to south by 7.5m east to west. The bases of both the east (0235) and west (0175) walls survived above their respective footings (5077, 0299) along with a portion of a southern return, in the south-east corner, above footing 652. The walls were constructed of septaria and mortar and measured 90cm in thick. The west wall (0175) was butted against the south choir wall while the east wall had been butted onto a south angle buttress of the choir. There was a 1.5m wide gap between the south wall of the sacristy and north wall of the chapter house. No internal features of this phase survived the phase 2 rebuilding.
In phase 2, it appears that the sacristy was joined to the chapter house. The angle buttress on the north-east corner of the chapter house was already only c.40cm from the sacristy wall and a new footing trench (0623) allowed the west sacristy wall (0299) to be joined to the north wall of the chapter house. The south wall of the sacristy was demolished making a sacristy 7.5m square.
Once the buildings had been linked, an internal north-south wall (0293), 30cm wide, resting on bare earth, and therefore assumed to be non-structural, was constructed running parallel with the west wall and 90cm from it. This may have constituted a 1.2m wide dais along the west side of the building and most likely represents the base of a night stair leading from the dorter, on the first floor of the range straight through the south choir wall and implies that the first floor dorter had been extended over the sacristy and up to the choir in this phase.
Later disturbance, along the inside face of the east wall had removed everything except a brick and septaria lined pit (0670) in the north-east corner of the building. The pit was 70cm square and 1.15m deep, with walls standing above the sacristy floor (0172). From its location, it could have been a drain taking a downpipe from the phase 1 choir roof, which had been incorporated into the sacristy rather than relocated, or more likely, as the fill (0208) contained 212 LMT sherds, it was a toilet, close to the choir, for the convenience of the friars.
The floor surface (0172, 0173) was confined to the centre of the building, and was probably bounded by a dais to the south, west and east. The tiles were of a size similar to those found within the chapter house and were laid out in a similar fashion, with blocks of tiles laid alternately square then diagonal to the orientation of the building. A number of larger tiles imply that this surface had been periodically patched, unlike in the chapter house and dorter, where the whole floor surface seems to have been replaced, (S1).

Sources/Archives (1)

  • <S1> Unpublished document: Wade, K. 2014. Ipswich Archive Site Summaries: St. Stephen's Lane..

Finds (0)

Protected Status/Designation

  • None recorded

Related Monuments/Buildings (2)

Related Events/Activities (1)

Record last edited

May 25 2017 10:39AM

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