Archaeology Notes
Event ID 713784
Category Descriptive Accounts
Type Archaeology Notes
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/713784
NT27SE 35.00 26896 73919
(Centred NT 2691 7392) Palace of Holyrood House on site of Holyrood Abbey AD 1128 (NR).
OS 25" map, (1931).
NT27SE 35.01 NT 26940 73964 Holyrood Abbey Church
NT27SE 35.02 NT 26876 73941 James IV's Tower
NT27SE 35.03 NT 26949 73952 Abbey Cloister
NT27SE 35.04 NT 26977 73969 Chapter-house
NT27SE 35.05 NT 2696 7400 Burial-ground
NT27SE 35.06 NT 26777 74009 Queen Mary's Bath
NT27SE 35.07 NT 26845 74005 North Garden, Sundial
NT27SE 35.08 NT 26811 73925 Old Gatehouse / Abbey Pend
NT27SE 35.09 NT 2691 7397 Chapel Royal
NT27SE 35.10 NT 26915 73969 Abbey Tower
NT27SE 35.11 NT 26943 73958 Chapel Royal
NT27SE 35.12 NT 26856 73907 Palace Yard, Fountain
NT27SE 35.13 Cancelled
NT27SE 35.14 NT 26814 73950 King Edward VII Memorial
NT27SE 35.15 NT 26861 73838 South Gateway (Palace Yard)
NT27SE 35.16 NT 26824 73968 North Gateway (Abbeyhill)
NT27SE 35.17 NT 26856 73907 Statue to Queen Victoria (Palace yard)
NT27SE 35.18 NT 26823 73908 Guard room (Palace Yard)
NT27SE 35.19 NT 36796 73897 (New) Gatehouse (Palace Yard)
NT27SE 35.20 NT 26829 73883 Stables and Mews (Palace Yard)
NT27SE 35.22 NT 26814 73918 Abbey Court House (Abbey Strand)
NT27SE 35.23 NT 26835 73857 Yard House (Palace Yard)
NT27SE 35.24 NT 26846 73811 Holyrood Lodge
For Queen's Gallery (former Holyrood Free Church and School, at NT 26799 73911), see NT27SE 2081.
For buildings (St Anne's Yards) centred at NT 2699 7380, see NT27SE 3965.
It was James IV who, in 1501, commenced to build a palace in the outer court of Holyrood Abbey originally founded by David I in 1128 AD for Augustinian Canons. No doubt suitable parts of the Abbey were repaired and included, but a new tower, hall, chapel and gatehouse were constructed. James IV did not live to see his work completed, which was continued until 1530, and indeed Pitscottie (J Sinclair 1900) attributes the whole of the work to James V, who however, had only attained the age of 17 when it was stopped.
RCAHMS 1951; J B A A 1935, 186; Gordon of Rothiemay 1647; J Milne 1663; Archaeol J 1936.
The Palace - originally commenced in 1501 by James IV. James IV's tower, the walls of which had been finished as early as 1505, can still be seen at the NW corner of the present building, but the rest of the 16th century palace, excepting a fragment of the gatehouse has been swept away in the course of several reconstructions. The palace itself has an affinity to Tattershall Castle in England and to other palatia on the Continent.(W D Simpson 1935).
The manner in which the Gothic palace of 1544 gave way to an orderly Renaissance layout can be clearly seen from comparison of Gordon of Rothiemays map of 1647 and John Mylne's Survey of 1663.
In November 1650, the palace took fire while occupied by Cromwell's troops but cannot have suffered extensive damage as it was again reoccupied in 1655. After his restoration Charles II resolved to rebuild, which was commenced in 1671 by Robert Mylne, Kings Master Mason in accordance with Sir William Bruce's designs.
RCAHMS 1951.
The Abbey of Holyrood was founded in AD 1128 by David I for Augustinian Canons. This first church was later replaced by a much larger one in the latter part of the 12th century and during the 13th century. There is evidence that an octagonal chapter-house was built about 1400 AD, when the older part of the church fabric began to call for repair. Abbot Crawford provided re-inforcement by means of 'flying buttresses' in the second half of the 15th century. In 1544 Hertfords troops burned and looted the Abbey and it was again repaired in 1633 by Charles I for his Coronation, but in 1758 the roof timbers had decayed and were replaced by stone, which being too heavy for the structure eventually collapsed.
RCAHMS 1951.
All buildings associated with the PALACE and ABBEY have been fully described by the RCAHMS and are under their guardianship.
Visited by OS(JLD) 31 December 1953
NT 269 740 During the upgrading of the Victorian boilerhouse, human remains were uncovered. Excavation by GUARD revealed the remains of a minimum of 38 individuals from two main phases of burial which form part of the medieval and post-medieval cemetery at the abbey church (NT27SE 35.01).
S Bain 1995
The above line stating that that the Palace and Abbey are under the guardianship of RCAHMS is incorrect as they are under the guardianship of the Royal House of Holyrood.
Information from RCAHMS (RHM) 19 February 1998.
NT 269 738 The archaeological work at Holyrood Palace (NMRS NT27SE 35.00) involved the investigation of an area of ground to be disturbed in excavations in advance of the installation of parking meters in the area immediately to the E of the palace boundary wall. The deposits exposed were consistent, and all appeared to be modern.
NT 2691 7392 The digging of a trench to carry a pipe needed to upgrade the water supply within the palace and gardens was monitored. In most cases the new trench followed the line of earlier works. Evidence was found of the initial levelling of the site, the abbey construction, pits - mostly thought to be graves, and later levelling.
Sponsor: Historic Scotland
A Radley 1999
NT 2691 7392 A number of archaeological works have been completed in the Palace of Holyroodhouse over the past 12 months:
The Piazza. Five trial trenches were excavated in December 1999 in the Piazza, a grassed area enclosed by a paved, arcaded quadrangle within the Palace of Holyroodhouse, to locate the cast-iron pipe serving the sprinkler system inside the palace. Archaeological supervision was implemented when a small amount of the trench had been excavated by the Historic Scotland squad, and they had observed in situ masonry. As work continued, topsoil deposits were removed by the squad and the material below by the archaeologists, sometimes with assistance from the squad. The trenches were up to 1m deep. No significant archaeological features were recorded, beyond the location of the masonry structures uncovered.
A further programme of clearance and landscaping was undertaken in May 2000 to remove the deposit of ash below the Piazza turf prior to the laying of a new lawn. The bulk of the spoil removal was by machine, and an archaeological presence was maintained throughout.
The majority of the features encountered comprised services, these being recorded principally to show areas of disturbance.
The Forecourt. A watching brief was carried out in the forecourt to the W of the palace between February and March 2000. The only archaeological feature revealed comprised a remnant wall in line with the walling seen at the W gate, and this was interpreted as a possible earlier boundary wall for the forecourt.
Sponsor: Historic Scotland
A Dunn 2000
NT 2692 7389 Excavation and monitoring works were undertaken between July and September 2001, in advance of an extensive programme of the upgrading of services for the Palace of Holyroodhouse (NMRS NT27SE 35). Excavation was undertaken in two areas - the forecourt, and the S side of the piazza within the palace complex. The trenches in the forecourt were narrow and dug to a general depth of approximately 1.5m for the subsequent location of new service conduits. The cutting ran in a series of stages, from the main entrance of the palace on its W side round to meet the Archers Gate on the S side of the palace. Evidence was retrieved of at least three courtyard/parade ground surfaces, generally cobbled and metalled surfaces. The sequence appears to reflect forecourt levels from late monastic occupation of the site, the later 17th century, and the 19th century. The earliest surface is generally of 15th-century date and demonstrates how much the forecourt levels had been raised over the two successive periods.
At one point a N-S aligned covered drain was revealed, sealed by the last metalled surface, appearing therefore to represent early medieval occupation of this part of the abbey precinct. The area to the S of the W side of the palace revealed evidence of various 18th-century additions to the palace as depicted on the Edgar map of 1742. However, more substantial footings were revealed, perhaps revealing structures depicted on this part of the site on the 1647 Rothiemay perspective.
Within the S alley of the 17th-century piazza, evidence was found of a series of buildings demolished at the time of the Charles II rebuilding of the palace, but which generally respect a similar plan/footprint. These structures comprised at least one internal space with a hearth, but which lay near/was linked to service structures or spaces on the evidence of cobbled surfaces and paving. These elements appear to be part of the post-medieval palace layout, but which may in turn derive from earlier monastic ranges/structures. The earliest feature so far revealed was some sort of oven or forge complex located at the W end of the S alley of the piazza. This comprised a well-constructed flue or ash pit with much associated burning and heat-affected surfaces; pottery retrieved from the infill of this structure suggests at least a 14th-century date for its late use.
A watching brief was also maintained on cable laying throughout the SW corner of the palace complex over three floors.
Sponsor: Historic Scotland
G Ewart 2000
NT 269 739 The results of the recent fieldwork programme can be described in terms of a series of rebuilding and clearance works completed on the site primarily after the construction of the NW Tower by James V in 1529-32 (Period III, 1550-1650). Certain residual structures and deposits were picked up within the Piazza and Forecourt areas, and they are separated on the basis of pottery evidence. The earliest period (Period I, 1150-1350) has shown activity in the form of drains and a possible ditch - the former lying to the W of the present Palace, and the latter to the S. The Period II (1350-1550) episodes refer to late monastic activity within the area of the ranges to the S of the Abbey Church, later absorbed as the Piazza in Period III.
With the exception of these residual features, the bulk of the findings of the excavation demonstrated that the area immediately W of the developing Palace saw repeated infilling after the 1530s, forming a succession of road/yard surfaces. Within the Piazza, a series of chambers was identified of 15th/16th-century date. The area S of the Palace also picked up evidence of the 17th-century extensions in this area - primarily attempts to regularise the 16th-century Palace plan. The construction of the SW Tower and the demolition of a variety of late monastic ranges saw the partial incorporation of earlier structures within the new S side of the Piazza, commenced in the 1670s.
Archive to be deposited in the NMRS.
Sponsor: HS
G Ewart (Kirkdale Archaeology) 2002
NT 269 739 During the extensive renovation and upgrading works on parts of the N Range of the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the downtaking of the dividing wall between Rooms 13 and 15 (N range, third floor) revealed that it was of unusually high-quality work. This wall was a simple stud partition with lightweight laminate wall fabric with wallpaper finish, but after removal of the wall surfaces (by contractors) the timber framework was recorded prior to removal.
The timber frame comprised a series of vertical and horizontal beams with two diagonal bracing beams. The entire structure was of pine and was assembled prior to fixing against floor and ceiling. This was achieved by a series of heavy iron bolts with plate terminals and a central tie rod.
The following inscription was seen, written in pencil in a 'Copperplate' hand:
Wm. Dunnet
Joiner Sept 20th 1900
Holyrood
The quality of the work is surprisingly high and the metalwork is also of good quality. The latter are of unusual design and may have been custom made. All this may indicate high quality control for a major reworking of the upper floor, from a series of large spaces to smaller individual chambers, at the turn of the 19th/20th century.
Also during this programme, numerous floorboards, fittings and doors were removed by contactors. This work was monitored.
At ground-floor level, within the present kitchens, excavation in advance of new gas mains installation revealed the presence of human burials. These comprised evidence of four mature adults, two juveniles, one child, and one baby. Due to the constraints of the area opened, only a brief record was feasible, and they were not disturbed any further. The individuals appeared to be part of a secular graveyard lying to the N and W of the Abbey Church, pre-dating the construction of the later 17th-century Palace and any possible 16th-century precursor.
Archive to be deposited in the NMRS.
Sponsor: HS
G Ewart (Kirkdale Archaeology) 2002
NT 269 739 Archaeological monitoring was undertaken in November 2001 while a cable trench was cut through the South Gardens of the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
The layers exposed below the S lawn consisted of topsoil, levelling debris, and demolition debris sealing cobble surfaces with occupation or post-occupation deposits and cut-away wall-lines. The excavation of this area revealed 23m of almost continual structure, comprising from the N: a cobbled area; a massive E-W wall-line; a N-S return; a truncated E-W wall; a buttress or plinth structure; a large E-W wall; a cobbled area with open drain; and finally a thin E-W wall. The principal alignment for these structures is E-W, but it is noted that they are offset from the E-W alignment of the Palace by c 15o.
The layers exhibited where the trench cut into the road consisted of three layers of metalling and levelling over subsoil. These layers sealed only one structure - a vaulted culvert seen at the far S end of the trench.
The likelihood is that the trench has cut across a range of E-W aligned structures commencing from the N end with a cobbled street or courtyard bounded to the S by a massive load-bearing wall with a chamber against the S face of it.
Archive to be deposited in the NMRS.
Sponsor: HS
G Ewart 2002
NT 269 738 A programme of standing building recording and archaeological monitoring was undertaken between September 2002 and March 2003 in the N range of Holyrood Palace during intrusive works and alterations (see DES 2002, 51). Most of this work involved the baseline recording of features on the third floor, especially the examination of underfloor features exposed during work carried out as part of the ongoing Services Upgrade Project. Structural features uncovered in the E wall of the ground-floor kitchen were closely examined, where it was noted that the E end of the kitchen abuts the W end of the abbey church and is the oldest standing part of the existing palace, incorporating parts of the medieval abbey. There was evidence for a possible doorway between the palace and church, converted into a kitchen fireplace, and for more recent kitchen ventilation and storage features.
Archive to be deposited in the NMRS.
Sponsor: HS
G Ewart 2003
NT 269 738 Broad Pavement. Trial trenching was undertaken at the Broad Pavement car park in January 2003 to establish the nature of the deposits in the 1.5m of ground below the present surface. The procedure involved the cutting of four test pits by machine at relevant points along the length of the car park.
Further larger-scale excavations were monitored between February and March 2003 over the entire car park plus an adjacent area of grass to the SW.
It seems that a shallow, low-lying depression at the base of the Crags became filled by a large volume (at least 250 x 40m) of sewage from the Canongate and Cowgate. This area then appears to have been cultivated before finally being sealed over and landscaped.
Archive to be deposited in the NMRS.
Sponsor: HS
G Ewart 2003
NT 268 739 A watching brief was undertaken between January and March 2004 during a small excavation for the planting of a large tree located to the W of the Palace forecourt. Relatively modern structural features were removed and earlier, possibly 18th-century, features were left intact and were not considered to be under threat by future root growth.
NT 269 738 As part of a comprehensive upgrade in services within and N of the N Range of the Palace (DES 2003, 72), two trenches were excavated in August and September 2004. The first cut across the raised platform immediately N of the Palace block and uncovered evidence of its construction and drainage, suggesting it formed part of the late 17th-century rebuilding of the Palace.
The other trench cut across the N side of the Piazza and revealed evidence of modern service installation. A late 17th-century door was discovered in situ on the ground floor, recently obscured by boarding to receive electricity cables.
Archive to be deposited in the NMRS.
Sponsor: HS.
A Radley 2004
Standing building recording; watching brief NT 269 738 This phase of services upgrading (DES 2004, 56) affects the NW tower of the Palace complex, and as such retains evidence of the evolution of the site from some form of monastic
guest accommodation, possibly developed by James IV and later developed by James V, before its ultimate absorption within the late 17th-century plan largely extant today. Detailed evidence of floor construction, remodelling of doors and windows, and a complex sequence of changes of access are being recorded.
Archive to be deposited in NMRS.
Sponsor: HS.
G Ewart 2005
c NT 269 739 A watching brief was undertaken in April 2005 during the excavation of extensive trenches in the gardens around the Palace of Holyroodhouse (NT27SE 35.00) and the abbey (NT27SE 35.01). The archaeological potential of these areas was somewhat limited by the extensive landscaping works undertaken in the gardens over the last two centuries, although there was a higher chance of encountering buried features near the ruinous abbey. There were no finds or features of archaeological significance.
Archive to be deposited in NMRS.
Sponsor: HS.
D Stewart 2005
NT 269 738 As part of the final stage of the services upgrade programme for the palace, elements of the NW Tower of James V were recorded in advance of new service track installation between October and December 2005. The recent survey work and documentary research has reviewed the original layout of the tower and its later history.
The tower was conceived of as a free-standing structure, to the NW of and slightly detached from the pre-existing palace. Its ground floor consisted of two chambers with stone barrel-vaults, the western of which still survives. In August 1529, when the surviving documentation begins, the vaults were already in place and work had started on the upper walls.
The internal space of the tower consisted of two principal rooms on each floor, with smaller rooms in the western rounds. These rooms on the first and second floors formed the outer and inner chambers of the stacked royal lodging. Each of these apartments had separate access. The continued rebuilding of the palace by James V saw the integration of the originally freestanding tower with adjacent structures.
Access to the gardens to the N was by means of a raised timber gallery entered from a new door in the N wall of the outer chamber. This gallery was demolished in 1676 and replaced with a stone-built wing intended as an extension of the royal apartments.
The stair in the NE round was extended upwards to give access to both the upper floor of the tower and the E quarter. This made the smaller stair within the wall of the tower redundant.
The two straight stairs connecting in the N wall of the inner chambers were replaced by a turnpike stair that rose from the ground floor. This is likely to have been inserted when the northern extension was created in c 1676.
After the demolition of the northern extension in the early 19th century , the N wall was refaced and new narrow slit windows placed to light the stair. The doorway from the first floor was sealed and the inner part of this aperture converted into a cupboard.
Archive to be deposited in NMRS.
Sponsor: Historic Scotland
Gordon Ewart and Dennis Gallagher, 2006.
