Monument record 1160/0/311 - Medieval quarrying, Abington Street

An intermittent watching brief was undertaken in 1992 during the redevelopment of a site lying between Abington Street and The Ridings. Despite extensive truncation by basements, there was evidence of significant quarry pitting. The pits appear to have been backfilled by the 14th century. Further pits and a length of wall also dated to the medieval period.

{1} An intermittent watching was undertaken during redevelopment of the site. The site was extensively basemented and although archaeological features survived, all the cut features had been heavily truncated. There were a series of very deep backfilled quarry pits, the deepest of which, unbottomed, extended to at least 8m below the modern street level. Pottery recovered from the upper fills of one of these complexes of pits suggests that at least some were being infilled no later than the 14th century. The most heavily quarried areas appeared to be away from the street frontages. Other pits dated to the 13th and 15th centuries. Two fragments of ironstone walling were located in the west side of the main trench.

<1> Cadman, G, 1992, Archive report on archaeological watching brief: Co-op redevelopment, Northampton, March-August 1992 (Report). SNN111507.

Record last edited

Feb 25 2025 8:11PM