Excavation

Date 15 April 2009 - 22 September 2009

Event ID 990527

Category Recording

Type Excavation

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/990527

Headland Archaeology Ltd was commissioned by Transport Initiatives Edinburgh (tie) Limited to carry out archaeological works comprising the excavation of the remains of the post-medieval graveyard associated with South Leith Parish Church in advance of the main tram track construction (INFRACO) in Constitution Street. The excavation yielded 302 inhumations within a variety of grave types. Constitution Street, adjacent to the graveyard wall of the local parish church, was built in 1790 to improve access to the harbour. Despite the proximity to a known graveyard, the density and preservation of graves was unexpected, as the extent of burials was thought not to have gone much beyond the existing graveyard wall. No finds of human remains had been reported previously, despite evidence that many burials had been cut by modern services. The graves, orientated WNW-ESE, were arranged in closely spaced rows. The majority were single, supine extended inhumations interred in wooden coffins or in earthen graves. Also present were shrouded bodies placed in simple graves, group burials in irregular pits including superimposed double burials, usually of a child and an adult. Most artefacts were iron coffin nails, with a few shroud pins. A copper buckle was found in one grave, along with textile remains of clothing worn by the deceased. Documentary and pottery evidence point to a date in the 16th and 17th centuries for most graves, and all pre-date construction of Constitution Street c.1790. There is a strong possibility however that earlier medieval burials are located in the cemetery, possibly associated with the 15th-century hospital and chapel which stood on and close to the present church. Radiocarbon dating and further stratigraphic analysis may give us a more accurate picture of their chronology.

Headland Archaeology 2009 (S. Spanou) OASIS ID: headland1-150108