1987:53 - WATERFORD: Lady Lane/Bakehouse Lane, Custom House Ward, Waterford

This site was one of four excavated within the known medieval boundaries of Waterford, under the supervision of Maurice F. Hurley, City Archaeologist,  prior to the proposed redevelopment of Waterford city centre.

A trench, 14.5m east-west by 8m north-south, was excavated to a depth of 4.75m. The feature of earliest date uncovered was a large ditch, 7.25m wide by 1.7m deep, extending in a north-south direction. A bank had stood on its east side but had been levelled into the ditch sealing c. 0.5m of accumulated silt and refuse. No datable material was uncovered from this fill, although the ditch evidently pre-dates the late 12th century. It may represent part of the earliest Hiberno/ Viking defences of Waterford. Several layers of 12th- and 13th-century occupation overlay the infilled ditch. There were at least 6 floor levels and numerous pits and wooden posts from which samples for dendrochronological analysis have been taken.

In the late 13th century, a wall c. 1m wide built on top of the levelled bank, was almost totally destroyed by the foundations of a 19th-century basement. Against the wall c. 0.5m of 14th-century refuse had accumulated.

The finds include large amounts of iron slag, leather shoes and scrap leather. Pottery from Ham Green was found in the 12th/13th-century levels and French, Bristol and native Irish pottery in the 13th/ 14th century levels. A noteworthy feature was the presence of large amounts of waste from antler, bone and leather working. Red deer skulls with attached antlers as well as shed burrs were recovered.

Planning Dept., Waterford Corporation, The Mall, Waterford