P5244 Sewerage Attenuation Tank, 28-40 Blossom Street, York
Item
- Title
- P5244 Sewerage Attenuation Tank, 28-40 Blossom Street, York
- Alternative Title
- YORYM: 2009.156 Sewerage attenuation tanks, 28-40 Blossom Street, York (EVL)
- Description
-
ASSESSMENT
A 2.8m deep excavation at 28-40 Blossom Street conducted between 30th June and 14th August 2009 encountered natural glacial deposits at 13.22-13.06m AOD, overlain by six phases of Roman activity dating from the late 1st to the late 4th centuries AD, 3 phases of medieval deposits and 2 phases of post-medieval and modern activity.
Roman activity consisted of 1st/2nd century ditches and a small road, mid 2nd/early 3rd century levelling and possible industrial and funerary activity, major 3rd century levelling and possible structures and a mid/late 4th century clearance and building. Of specific interest are the early ditches which have potential parallels nearby, the possibility of mid2nd/early 3rd century funerary features given the proximity of the site to known cemetaries, and the apparent lack of any trace of the main road from Eboracum to Calcaria, thought to lie immediately north-west of the excavation. The absence of clear road-side structures akin to those encountered in earlier excavations in this area until the late 4th century building may have significance for future studies of this area. Also of interest is the extensive amount of material used in both phases of levelling, derived from a mixture of industrial, domestic and funerary sources, which have the potential to refine understanding of Roman activity in the wider Blossom Street area.
Post-Roman activity was limited to evidence of 11th-13th century ‘back-land’ agricultural activity, overlain by 1m of medieval ploughsoil and the remains of nineteenth century buildings demolished in the 1960s.
ANALYSIS
The analysis phase of this investigation has resulted in a refinement of the original assessment phasing and interpretation. Activity commenced on this site with a late 1st/early 2nd century AD agricultural landscape, with a small road running perpendicular to the supposed main route into the civilian settlement from the south-west. The area south-west of this road was at the edge of a possible cremation cemetery in the early 3rd century AD, which seems to have gone out of use by the mid 3rd century, when a substantial levelling event using re-deposited 2nd century material occurred, with refuse pits and dumps, and a small post built structure with a cobbled surface was erected in the late 3rd century. This activity was then sealed by levelling deposits and the yard and post holes of a large timber building of early 4th century date. Its remains were heavily truncated by a clearance event in the late 11th century AD that removed any in-situ evidence for late and post-Roman activity, the presence of which was inferred from the quantity of residual material in later deposits. - Type
- Excavation
- Date
- 30 June 2009 – 14 August 2009
- Creator
- York Archaeological Trust
- Contributor
- Ian Milsted (Fieldwork)
- Louisa O'Shaughnessy (Fieldwork)
- Sarah Whittaker (Fieldwork)
- Jim Williams (Fieldwork)
- Andrew Winterburn (Fieldwork)
- Spatial Coverage
- 28-40 Blossom Street, York
- SE5959951296
- Monument Type
- Monument Type - Ditch
- Monument Type - Pits
- Monument Type - Levelling
- Monument Type - Road
- Monument Type - Surface
- Monument Type - Building
- Monument Type - Agriculture and Subsistence
- Period
- Romano-Britsh
- Medieval
- Post-medieval
Linked resources
| Title | Class |
|---|---|
 Yorkshire Archaeology Today 19 |
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