York Historic Environment Record

York Archaeological Trust undertook an evaluation excavation with the specific objective of establishing whether or not the graveyard of St Margaret's Church extended to the street frontage. Initially three trenches were machine stripped down to archaeological deposits where hand excavation commenced. Later an entirely hand-dug trench, Trench 4 was laid out adjacent to Paver Lane which runs back from Walmgate beside the site. In Trench 1 the earliest deposits and features encountered were of Anglo-Scandinavian date, almost certainly representing the internal floor levels of a 10th century structure. Unfortunately the walls of this structure lay outside the limited area excavated, but the internal deposits suggest domestic occupation rather than industrial activity. Away from the street frontage in Area 2 the deposits were markedly more mixed and were cut by a number of features, at least one of which could be positively identified as a wattle-lined pit typical of the Anglo- Scandinavian (and medieval) period. Sealing the Anglo-Scandinavian occupation in Area 1 was a series of surfaces, some of well-laid cobbles, others of compacted mould fragments. To the rear, in Area 2, there was another sudden change in activity. The mixed deposits and pits were superseded by another series of surfaces composed mainly of cobbles and limestone. The site showed extensive, vigorous, and varied activity from the 10th century through to post-medieval times and confirmed Walmgate’s longstanding importance as an arterial route through the city. NMR Information: Museum accession codes: 1991.21 (Evaluation) & 1992.171 (Watching brief). RCHME Microfilm PRN 3286 & 4455.