The dig – twists and turns

When we stopped last night, the trench was in a rather puzzling state. In the morning it all seemed to become clear. A wide largely chalk foundation emerged in the Pound Street end of the trench in the predicted position of the front wall of the house. Something clear at last. Then, in the afternoon there were two odd developments. Firstly, a large cavity was found under a layer of hard crushed mortar. Further investigation suggested that it was probably a long disused animal burrow although it is not clear how the creatures – whatever they were – got in and out. It was too small for foxes – perhaps rats.
The second discovery was more interesting. When the original front wall of the house was uncovered, we discovered another smaller wall running off it at right angles. It may be the foundation of an early internal wall separating rooms, but this is at present unclear. Work continues tomorrow.

The chalk foundation of the original front wall. The brick on the right may have been added in the 18th century to support a timber floor

The centre of the trench with the original front wall at the top. The grey-brown foundation bottom centre appears to be an early internal wall. The red brick foundation to the right is probably part of an early 19th century addition to the front. It cuts across the earlier wall suggesting that it was demolished when the house was extended