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Excavation
Date 8 February 2002 - 19 March 2002
Event ID 1034269
Category Recording
Type Excavation
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1034269
NT 269 760 An excavation was undertaken in the vaulted basement of Trinity House (NT27NE 31) prior to the re-laying of the floor. The basement comprises three E-W aligned vaults. The area is accessed via a short flight of stone steps from the courtyard into a short passage. This leads to a doorway in the SW corner of the basement area, opening into a N-S aligned corridor along the W side of the S and central vaults and leading to the N vault. The general aim of the excavation was to remove approximately 100mm of the upper deposits from the whole of the floor area.
The results are described in terms of three basic periods of construction and occupation:
Period 1: The original vault construction and occupation 1555 to c 1816. The vaults generally date from this period and all the main walls were built at this time. The present access and the layout of the vaults is generally unchanged from Period 1, but the present steps are probably a revision of an earlier series.
Period 2: Refurbishment of the cellars, c 1816 to late 20th century. This period saw the separation of each vault space into the present 'room' configuration, as a series of interconnected chambers. They were in turn separated from each other with gates or doors between. The vaults were ultimately furnished with 'wine cellar' style brick and concrete storage boxes or bins.
Period 3: Late changes/conversions, late 20th century to present. The doors between rooms were removed at this time and the cellar reverted to a generally open area, ultimately used as a coal store.
G Ewart and A Radley 2002
Sponsor: Historic Scotland
Kirkdale Archaeology
