Day9: 17 July 00
Today, work was targeted at the problems identified at the end of last week. It is important to identify the extent to which earlier remains have survived underneath the chapel floor. We are now in the process of excavating one quadrant of the chapel nave, in order to see how much has survived, and to try and correlate earlier remains lying to the north and to the southwest. Preliminary trowelling indicates that a number of features have survived, and these will be looked at in more detail tomorrow. The illustration shows the flagging of an earlier building running below the nave floor.
Excavation in the nave showing earlier flagging.
We also need to clarify the construction and dating of the two parallel enclosure walls, and today we commenced excavating a box section to show the formal stratigraphic relationships. What has now become apparent, given the development of topsoil over the collapse of the earlier wall, is that there may have been a period of abandonment on the site before the later enclosure wall was constructed.
Excavation of the box section through the two enclosure walls.
For some time, we have been trying to locate the entrance through the later enclosure wall to the west door of the chapel. Now that the western enclosure wall has been fully revealed and cleaned, a blocking has become evident lying in direct alignment to the chapel entrance.
Blocking of the opening in the enclosure wall at the west end of the chapel.
Tomorrow, we shall also be tackling the problem of the returns of the two enclosure walls, and of the complex of structures to the east of the chancel.