posted 20th February 2025
Our excavation in Keynsham in advance of building works is now completed. Our work followed on from a series of small trenches excavated in 1999 which highlighted the presence of Medieval and Post-medieval archaeology in the area.
Our excavation revealed Medieval property boundary walls, rubbish/cess pits and a demolished building, all of which would have been located to the rear of Medieval houses fronting onto High Street, i.e beneath the Old Bank pub. Our Medieval finds include pottery and glazed roof tiles as well as large amounts of animal bone. We also have a number of small metal finds from the Medieval period such as buckles, strap fittings and a French Jetton (counter token) dating from 1380-1422.
The Medieval building appears to have been demolished around the Tudor period when a number of large rubbish pits were dug. These again contained pottery (beer mugs) and animal bone as well as a number of pins. Excavation across the site recovered three thimbles of a similar date which may hint at activities such as lacemaking taking place in the area. We also recovered a well-worn sixpence of Queen Elizabeth I dated 1600. Two German Jettons, manufactured in Nuremberg between 1586 and 1635, were also found.
Following on from the Tudor period we found a number of very deep rubbish pits dating from the 17th to 19th centuries. These contained large amounts of locally produced pottery (North Devon, Bristol) as well as imported wares (Germany). A lot of clay tobacco pipes and wine bottles were also found within the rubbish pits.
The Medieval property boundary walls appear to have been rebuilt at around the same time as a large barn type structure was erected over the area in around the later 18th century, sealing the earlier features and deposits beneath.
A report on the results of our work will now be completed and the finds deposited with a local museum.