Watching Brief

Date December 1998 - 24 January 1999

Event ID 556016

Category Recording

Type Watching Brief

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/556016

Throughout 1998, and into 1999, Kirkdale Archaeology maintained a watching brief during renovations within Edinburgh Castle's Hospital Square, in the NW of the castle. Hospital Square is formed by two rectangular ordnance stores, orientated EW, with a gap between them of some 27.5m, now cobbled over. The ordnance stores were both constructed in 1753, but in 1897 they were converted into hospitals, with the southern block retaining much of its' original character, while that to the N saw more drastic alterations, such as the addition of two towers projecting S from its' S face. Contemporary with these two structures was a powder magazine, built at the W end of the square, running N-S, between the two stores, but only physically connected to the S one. A protective blast wall ran N-S to the E of this magazine, connecting both the stores. In1897 this was demolished and levelled over to provide the present day square.

Excavations within Hospital Square have demonstrated the survival of substantial remains of the 1753 powder magazine. These would appear to be exclusively below floor foundations, and show the massive nature of the masonry required for a structure housing such dangerous materials. In no place were the bottom of these foundations revealed. While survival was generally good, many of the walls encountered had been damaged by service trenches cutting across the courtyard, although it seems likely that walls will survive elsewhere.

A remarkably homogenous soil deposit, which was also seen at the W end of the courtyard, seems likely to represent the infilling of a demolished structure to provide a level surface for the courtyard, presumably in 1897. While little was found connected with the use of the powder magazine, it was possible to confirm that the massive foundations of this structure survive substantially intact.

Sponsor : Historic Scotland

D Murray 1998

Kirkdale Archaeology