There is a saying .. it’s not over until the Fat Lady sings and so it proved at the excavation. After the successful Big Village Dig and the holiday season during which special find examinations and reports were being compiled, Deputy Project Manager Richard Cawthorne returned to the site with his trowel for a couple of days with the sole purpose of verifying elements for the excavation report; however a couple of days of digging proved to be very worthwhile.
The first task was to remove the remaining stones where the medieval Mortar had been found to verify the edge of the earliest platform which we had discovered. He found the edge of the platform as expected but what surprised him was the discovery of 2 flints sitting beneath the stones at the interface with glacial clay laid down at the time of Lake Humber. The likelyhood is that they will have been redeposited at some time but they are further evidence of Mesolithic activity on the site. The 2 newly discovered flints were added to the growing number of flints discovered on the site and were sent for expert examination.
A further success followed as his second task was to verify that the structures we have excavated have been built on an earlier ridge and furrow plough soil. He duly did this by digging a 6m trench section which clearly illustrated the rise and fall of the ridge and furrow.
However, what he did not expect to find was a post hole which proved to be the missing link and lined up with other previously discovered post holes and formed a median axis of the latest 19th Century northwest-southeast building. He had found evidence of the support structure of the building’s roof.
In late November, Site Director of Archaeology Simon Tomson, Volunteer Charles Hart and Project Manager, Ray Newton gave presentations at the Volunteers Project Review Day which was attended by around 50 participants and some enthusiasts who are hoping to obtain grants from the Heritage Lottery Fund to undertake similar projects to Finding Fryston. All who attended were extremely complimentary about the event saying they had learnt much about the excavation, specific finds and new revelations about the History and Heritage of Monk Fryston. We will be staging a similar event to provide feedback about the project to residents in the spring.
In late November, Site Director of Archaeology Simon Tomson, Volunteer Charles Hart and Project Manager, Ray Newton gave presentations at the Volunteers Project Review Day which was attended by around 50 participants and some enthusiasts who are hoping to obtain grants from the Heritage Lottery Fund to undertake similar projects to Finding Fryston. All who attended were extremely complimentary about the event saying they had learnt much about the excavation, specific finds and new revelations about the History and Heritage of Monk Fryston. We will be staging a similar event to provide feedback about the project to residents in the spring.
The coming of winter has heralded a further bout of activity as 3 project groups are now developing the content for the legacy elements of projects; Village Heritage Interpretation Boards, a display of the history of the village in St Wilfrids, and a display of artefacts in Monk Fryston Hall Hotel. In addition an unexpected spin off of the Jig Saw Day is a free one day course on how to draw pottery which is being hosted and led by Ann Jenner of York Archaeological Trust in January.
The busy schedule will ensure the project doesn't go cold despite it being winter!
The busy schedule will ensure the project doesn't go cold despite it being winter!
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