Monument record IPS 612 - 1 Cobbold Street, Ipswich, (IAS 8520).

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Summary

Medieval to Early Post Medieval quarry pits, cess pits and a well identified during excavation work at 1 Cobbold Street. A possible Anglo-Saxon ditch was also identified.

Location

Grid reference Centred TM 166 447 (14m by 16m) (2 map features)
Map sheet TM14SE
Civil Parish IPSWICH, IPSWICH, SUFFOLK

Map

Type and Period (11)

Full Description

2009: Archaeological monitoring and excavation revealed quarrying pits of medieval date and pit digging of late Medieval to Post Medieval date. During the medieval period ploughsoil deposits accumulated over earlier ditches and there was localised quarrying of the underlying boulder clay. The infilling of the quarry and subsequent dumping of soil might indicate deliberate landscaping of the site. Intensive pit digging from the 16th century onwards was associated with the development of houses along the St Margaret's Green frontage of the site. A masonry well, cesspits (one with a stone-lining) and refuse pits were presumably located in yards or gardens to the rear of those properties. The quality of some of the ceramics from these pits supports the documentary evidence in demonstrating the relatively high-status of the inhabitants. In the post-medieval period areas of the site that were formerly used for the disposal of cess and refuse in pits were covered by layers of garden soil. During the 19th century some of these gardens were built over, and an ironworks was established in one of the buildings along the southern boundary of the site.

A substantial north-south ditch near the western edge of the site produced three struck flints and might have been of later prehistoric date. However, its location and orientation suggest that it was more likely to have been a road-side ditch associated with the Anglo-Saxon origins of St Margaret's Green. Two other stratigraphically early ditches of uncertain date are interpreted as probable field/plot boundaries (S1).

Sources/Archives (1)

  • <S1> Unpublished document: Heard, K.. 2013. Post Excavation Assessment Report: Land adjacent to 1 Cobbold Street, Ipswich.

Finds (43)

Protected Status/Designation

  • None recorded

Related Monuments/Buildings (6)

Related Events/Activities (4)

Record last edited

Jul 11 2017 8:59AM

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