Trial Trench

Date 31 August 2015 - 7 September 2015

Event ID 1088555

Category Recording

Type Trial Trench

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1088555

Limited archaeological trial trenching was carried out by GUARD Archaeology and volunteers from the Renfrewshire Local History Forum in September 2015 to the west of Paisley Abbey in Paisley. This excavation followed on from a similar small scale excavations between 2009 and 2011 to investigate whether buildings associated with Paisley Abbey and the drain survive within surrounding area. Three trial trenches were excavated to the west of the Abbey and uncovered deep demolition layers and recent levelling deposits along with stone and brick foundations from buildings that occupied the site in the nineteenth century and were later demolished and the area landscaped.

Although no definitive medieval structures were uncovered a large number of medieval roof tiles were recovered from the lower deposits in two of the trenches which provide information on what the medieval buildings would have looked like. The survival of late medieval deposits suggest that there is the possibility that medieval buildings or foundations may survive in the area.

Infromation from GUARD Archaeology Ltd.