2001:249 - BISHOPSGATE, Coleraine, Derry

Pre-construction monitoring of groundworks was carried out as part of ongoing work on the Diamond Shopping Centre. The groundworks included ground reduction to facilitate foundation bases and underpinning of existing foundations.

The area reduced for the foundation bases consisted of a black gritty clay containing large quantities of modern building refuse. This layer ranged in depth from 0.4m to 0.9m and immediately overlay subsoil. No archaeological deposits were recorded in this material.

Monitoring of the foundation underpinning revealed the presence of three pits containing disarticulated human remains. Pit 1 measured 0.9m north–south by 1.2m and was cut into subsoil to a depth of 0.7m. The pit extended below the existing foundations for an unknown distance. It was filled with a loose black loam and also contained abundant disarticulated human remains. Pit 2 measured approximately 0.8m north–south by 0.6m and was cut into subsoil to a depth of 0.7m. It was filled with a loose, black loam and also contained abundant disarticulated human remains. Pit 3 was approximately 1.6m south of Pit 2 and measured 1.3m north–south by 1.1m. It was cut into subsoil to a depth of 0.4m and was filled with a compact black plastic clay, which again contained abundant disarticulated human remains.

Excavation of the three pits revealed the bone assemblage to consist predominantly of long bones and skulls. This, combined with the random nature of their deposition, indicates that the pits functioned as secondary dumping areas. North Devon pottery recorded within the fill of Pit 3 suggests that these pits may have been dug in the 17th/18th centuries, but it is likely that the bone originates from the cemetery associated with the medieval friary, located within the limits of the development site.

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