Owen Owen's Site

July 1936

EXCAVATIONS IN THE CROSS

Night and day the noisy drills penetrate the hard stone, and massive timbers are being reared at the sides to hold them in safety. In one place where loose soil formed the side, a large piece of stone smashed the timbers to matchwood. There were only about three minutes warning, just long enough to get the men away and remove the engine crane on the top which very narrowly escaped falling down into the quarry.

Near the cattle shed, which I mentioned in my June article, large oak timbers have been unearthed, at a depth of 12ft. 6ins., which no doubt were the main stays of a house, and even under this was found the skeleton of a horse. The house was built on black soil, while about 3ft. lower the quarry fillings commence. To-night, the 23rd June, they have not reached the bottom of the quarry, even at a depth of 30 feet.

I said in my last article that goats' horns had been found; since then a goat's skin has been found in the black filling This skin was wrapped in folds, therefore, except for the last folds, it was quite clean. A child's boot, complete, save for the stitches, was unearthed and two plats of grass, which are in good condition. These plats were stitched together for beds and mats. Other pottery came to light also.

The extreme south end is not to be so deep, therefore I cannot say whether the black filling from which my articles usually come will be dug out.

Now the new road is being commenced other things are being revealed. I spent some time on the 17th June in the Guest House Crypt and found about 20 tiles with the Beauchamp Coat of Arms. Mr. P. Chatwin, the noted Church architect, thinks that probably the Beauchamp family built this Crypt. The floors are being removed from over the cellars of the old houses on the east side of Butcher Row and old stone foundations come to light. One wall is 2ft. 6ins. in width and extends down Priory Row to corner of Butcher Row, and is built on the solid rock. From the made up soil in this cellar human bones are being unearthed, and also on the extreme south-east of the quarry, just above Little Butcher Row, or Sleeper's Lane, a part of a human skull was sheared off with the spade in trimming down the sides. Sewers are to be made down the footpaths of the street, so digging will reveal what is quarried or otherwise.

Near Trinity Church is Trinity Lane, where at less than a depth of two feet quite a lot of human remains have been turned up. In a cellar built of the stone from the old Cathedral, destroyed in 1538, is a number of encaustic tiles used for packing the walls. One stone whorl, with one end straight instead of being oval as is usual, was found, also three wood wedges used for splitting the stone by wetting with water, and causing to swell after being driven into the natural cavities in the rock.

Near one of the cattle sheds two large pieces of oak lay flat on the ground as though used for prizing the stone, in the same way as iron bars are used to-day.

Another month will see the quarry nearly finished, and if anything else is found I will record this in the August issue of the Magazine.

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