Trinity Street

October 1936

EXCAVATIONS IN TRINITY STREET

Nothing more is likely to come to light in the quarry, but in the new Trinity Street itself a number of things have been revealed. Quite a lot of pieces of stone used in the cellars of the houses in Butcher Row prove to have been used for the purpose of foundations, etc, after the destruction of the Monastery in 1538. Quite interesting are the designs, one piece being a corbel stone with a sculptor's design of a lion's head. A pair of 13th or 14th century scissors, made as at that time like shears, was found. The spring is as good as ever it was, and being embedded in black rubble, such as ashes, etc., they are not rusted in the same way, as if found in the soil. I believe that if they were sharpened they would yet cut material.

I reported in my last article that boots were being found. Since then scores of 13th to 14th century boots have been unearthed, sometimes as many as five to ten pairs within a small space. I am not certain whether I reported finding a boot called a penitential boot, with five leaden studs, possibly to represent the five wounds of Christ. Amongst the later finds is another boot containing two large iron studs. Whoever wore this did his best to avoid the studs by carrying the weight on his toes, and the indentation is yet to be seen at the toe part of the shoe. Quite a lot of pieces of pottery of the same period as the shoes are being thrown out, also wood skewers as good as if only made yesterday. As bones were not used then for manure as they are to-day, thousands came to light, in better condition than when they were buried, and as black as coal. Goats' heads and horns, deers' antlers, horses' heads with every tooth intact, and a bone pin in perfect condition.

This work is now held up for some time, and to finish my article for this month's issue of the Magazine I will give the story of the discovery of a road on the opposite side of Hales Street, the site for the new Hippodrome. Mr. Harris, who is at present excavating for the levelling of the site, and testing depths for foundations, very kindly gave me permission to watch the site. The men are digging through the gardens and orchards (the Chauntry Orchard). As Hales Street was only made in 1848, and named after John Hales (who owned nearly all the sites in Coventry belonging to the Monastery), and Sprigg's Row was built in 1815, it seems difficult to know which way people got to their houses. Speed's map shows on its list No. 22 as Glower's Lane. As this reference number is not shown on the actual map, a query arises, and I have often hoped the day would come when I could trace a road over the gardens. A month ago I asked the men to keep a look out for a pebble road leading towards Priory Gate, now called "Swanswell Gate," and about a week ago this was discovered leading in that direction. The houses standing next the Hippodrome having now their fronts to Hales Street, originally had their fronts at the other side, and even to the time of demolition had part of an insurance plate affixed, which always had to be on the front of property.

The archway in the Gate House was filled in about eighty years ago, to make it into a dwelling for a shop. The road came through the arch, across the present Hippodrome, and over this orchard to Catesby Lane and St. Agnes Lane - thus they reached their homes.