| Popis: |
The Centre of Archaeology was commissioned in August 2014 by the St Giles Community Heritage Project to undertake an archaeological watching brief during geo-technical test pitting at St Giles Church in Newcastle-Under-Lyme. The archaeological watching brief successfully monitored the excavation of five test pits across the exterior land surrounding the church building. The test pits identified significant hardcore deposits beneath the tarmac of the existing car park. Two archaeological features of importance were identified (Test pits 1 and 3). In test pit 1, the upper surface of a probable brick vault for a tomb was encountered. The plan of the St Giles churchyard in 1873 clearly depicts graves in this area and it is highly possible that these graves will include tombs and family vaults. As only superficial groundworks are proposed in this area to replace the existing tarmac, it is unlikely that the brick vault will be disturbed during subsequent works. A line of insitu bricks were also encountered in test pit 3, An interpretation for this feature is difficult, but as outlined in the preceding paragraph, work in this area is limited to replacing the existing tarmac and no excavations will occur in this area. |
