Tenth-eleventh century pottery, 143-147 High Street (EHER 82059)

Trial trenching and archaeological excavation recovered 37 sherds of 10/11th century pottery which may be representative of Late Anglo Saxon occupation at the site.

July-August 2008. Trial trenching and archaeological excavation. The presence on this site of 36 sherds (457g) of Thetford-type ware and one sherd (5g) of St Neots-type ware suggests that there was 10th-/11th-century occupation here, which may have been pre-conquest in date. However, all the material occurred residually in later contexts, and no features can be assigned to this period. Of the greatest interest was the discovery of a few droplets of mercury in a layer which also contained 11th century pottery. It would be unwise to entirely exclude the possibility that the mercury has seeped down from above, but, on the basis of the excavated stratigraphy, there seems a strong probability that it is a genuine medieval find. If so, it is a reasonable assumption that the mercury was used in an industrial process on this site. Two industries which used mercury were gold-smithing and millinery (hat making), but there is no other evidence that either of these trades was actually carried out here. <1> <2>