Ipswich Waterfront
Significant work has been carried out on the Ipswich waterfront in
recent years. Evidence from
Albion Wharf has shown
that alignment of College Street/Key Street is quite a late
development, and that the foreshore was somewhat further to the
north within the area of the defended town. None of the significant
evidence from the site was earlier than late medieval in
date.
Cranfield’s Mill,
immediately to the west produced much more evidence for the
earlier use of the waterfront. As well as a high status later
medieval building there was substantial waterlogged survival
of a number of wooden structures. Chief among these were a
series of in situ hurdles running for at least 30m along the
waters edge at a level of 0.5m to 0.8m AOD (c. 2.5m below the
current ground level). Although post-excavation work is
currently ongoing these are thought to represent Middle or
Late Saxon revetments. It is certainly the level at which
Anglo-Saxon waterfront
features have been encountered
before. The bases of other later wooden structures were also
found and a plan showing all waterlogged structural wood is
shown. Much more work, including scientific dating and species
identification, needs to be undertaken before this complex
layout can be understood fully. This is currently
ongoing.
The location of St Bartholomew’s Wharf was
favourable, but in the event the results of the excavation were
very disappointing as the entire site had seen massive truncation
by a 19th century cellar.
A further informative site has recently been excavated at the
former Cranfield’s Garage (identified here as "The Western
Triangle") immediately to the north of Key Street. Again,
post-excavation work has yet to start on this site. It was not
thought that much evidence of waterfront features would be found
this far to the north, but initial impressions suggest the
contrary.
Substantial septaria-built walls
were found, currently thought to be of high medieval (c 14th
century) date. These were later reused/incorporated in other
buildings, but initially appear to have stood right on the
water’s edge. To the southern side were typical waterlogged
foreshore deposits while to the north there was an area of
very dense pitting and other occupation evidence of broadly
contemporary date to the earliest phase of wall construction.
The evidence was once again very complex and will require
considerable further work, but does suggest that the area
known as "The Wash" was larger than previously thought. This
in effect pushes the south-eastern corner of the town boundary
slightly further to the north-west. It also raises questions
about the construction of St Mary Quay Church, which would
appear to be founded on marshland rather than sound
gravel.
The last few years have seen a rare opportunity for close
examination of a specific area of the town. So many large sites
seeing excavation in such close proximity to one another represents
an important opportunity. As such, it has been agreed with the
various developers concerned that all will be considered together
and work on the combined Assessment Report is currently
underway.
County Hall, Ipswich
An archaeological excavation (IAS
6701) was undertaken in advance of a residential development
on land to the rear of County Hall, St Helen’s Street,
Ipswich, during July 2007. Evidence for Saxon occupation
outside of the defences of the Saxon town was identified in
the form of a ditch containing large amounts of Ipswich Ware
and a handful of pits.)
Three or possible four inhumations
were also excavated. Each comprised a single burial laid on
their backs and aligned east to west. No grave goods were
recovered indicating that these were probably Christian
burials. The date of these is at present unknown but they
appeared to be earlier than the excavated Saxon ditch
suggesting an early Saxon date or possible Roman.One of the
burials (right) the head has been lost due it having been
removed when a later pit was cut – fragments of the skull and
jawbone were recovered from the fill of the pit.
A total of 74 rifles, a single
handgun, and an amount of ammunition of various types were
also recovered during archaeological monitoring of the
grubbing out of the foundations of the police station that
formerly stood behind County Hall on St Helen’s Street,
Ipswich, in December 2006.
The collection
comprised:
numerous Martini-Henry single shot
rifles (c. 1870s/1880s) of the type used during the Zulu
wars,
+ c. 8 Short magazine Lee-Enfield rifles including at least one
Cavalry version (c. 1900),
+ 1 Lee-Metford version of the above,
+ 1 ‘Winchester’ type rifle (c. 1890s),
+ 1 Mosin-Nagent (Russian) service rifle (c. 1900s),
+ 1 Ross (Canadian, 1903 to c.1916),
+ c. 10 assorted others yet to be identified.
The handgun was believed to be an
early 20th century Webley officer’s pistol.The handgun and the
ammunition, which were found first, were handed to Suffolk
Constabulary. The remainder of the weapons were collected by
Mr T. Gillingham acting as a representative of the Suffolk
Regiment Museum.
The assumption is that the weapons were buried in the 1930s around
the time of the demolition of the old prison. It is thought they
consist of the clearing of an armoury (possible the police’s or the
prison’s own) and weapons collected from the public during an
amnesty.