Medieval features and finds, St Mary's Old Church, Mistley (EHER 7473)

The 1975 gas pipeline revealed a number of features in front of the church, all medieval or later. much rubble, septaria, limestone, brick and tile with some mortar and flint waste, almost certainly from the preparation of the flint facing of St Mary's Church's south aisle and porch was uncovered dating to the 16th century.

The 1975 gas pipeline revealed a number of features in front of the church, all medieval or later. The field ditch west of the modern road (TM 12843100) had been recut several times, one of the recuts being buried beneath the hedge bank. The road make-up was 0.3m thick, of at least two layers of pebbly clay each with a layer of black sandy loam at the base. Three black sandy loam layers were seen in the south section and contained prehistoric finds (EHER 7437) and much rubble, septaria, limestone, brick and tile with some mortar and flint waste, almost certainly from the preparation of the flint facing of the south aisle and porch. No concrete dressings were found. This gives an early 16th century date for the filling of these features, apparently oblique sections along a shallow irregular boundary ditch. If so, the boundary of the churchyard was moved northwards by c6m at some time to widen the road (which cuts into a mound or bank on the south side). A brick feature was also identified but not fully investigated and a construction trench only tentatively identified. <1>