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Land Adjacent to St. Bartholomews Priory, Sudbury, Suffolk. An Archaeological Evaluation, Watching Brief and Excavation


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Abstract

Between July and August 2004 the Cambridge Archaeological Unit undertook evaluation by trial trenching of approximately 8 hectares of land adjacent to (and up to 600 m to the west of) St. Bartholomews Priory, Sudbury, Suffolk, centred at TL 869 428. This was undertaken on behalf of Ashwell Developments Ltd. in advance of a proposed housing development. The evaluation was carried out in accordance with a specification of works and monitored by the County Archaeological Office of Suffolk County Council. Only post-medieval to modern features (such as rubbish pits, ditches and quarrying evidence) were uncovered, although a metal detecting survey of excavation spoil from the trenches revealed evidence for a concentration of metal artefacts ranging from medieval to post-medieval coins and tokens to buttons and musket balls within an area known as Little Fair Field, immediately adjacent to the priory. In December 2004 further archaeological work in the form of a watching brief and excavation was undertaken by CAU in the area of St. Bartholomews Lane and the roadway entrance to the priory. This was carried out at the request of the County Archaeological Office in accordance with a project design specification by CAU which followed the granting of outline planning consent to Westbury Homes Ltd. to develop the site adjacent to St. Bartholomews Priory Farm. Excavation covering an area of approx 7002 metres revealed evidence for a possible parallel ditch and bank with a mix of 14th/15th century and post-medieval pottery within the (inner) ditch fill, which abuts the original track to the priory. This has been interpreted as the probable medieval (outer) precinct boundary. An evaluation carried out by Suffolk County Council Archaeological Service in July 2004 inside of the priory farm recovered 12th/13th century pottery from test pits and a trench to the west and south of the surviving 14th century St. Bartholomews Chapel. This synthesis of current evidence now suggests that the former (inner precinct) of the medieval priory lay to the north and west of the present chapel and farmhouse, rather than in the area of the post-medieval (and medieval) farm

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Cambridge Archaeological Unit, Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge

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