2009:186 - DOWNHILL DEMESNE, Derry

The Bishop’s Palace or Downhill Castle consists of the ruined remains of a large neo-classical house, designed by Michael Shanahan and built for the Earl Bishop of Derry, Frederick Hervey. Begun in around 1775, it continued in various stages until about 1787, when an interconnected range was completed comprising a grand mansion (at south), stable court and yard (centre) and twin domestic yards (at north). A large part of the house was destroyed by a fire in 1851 but was rebuilt and substantially altered in the 1870s by the architect John Lanyon. During the Second World War, the then unoccupied house was billeted by the RAF and, following their exit, was sold in 1946. In 1950 its roof was removed and its interior stripped and the building was then abandoned to the elements. National Trust began acquiring parts of the demesne, including other demesne buildings from the 1960s, but the ruined house was not acquired until 1980, at which time the ruins were stabilised.
In an effort to understand more about the development and use of the house, an archaeological project was initiated in 2009 with the focus of exploring the twin yards at the north end of the range, which formerly functioned as domestic yards. A field season in August 2009 set to work removing vegetation and rubble overburden from within the East Yard. This work revealed a series of ruined buildings within the yard which originally served as poultry house, dairy, laundry and kitchen. Removal of rubble revealed original cobbled surfaces within the yard, including within the interior of all of the ruined buildings investigated. By the end of the first field season an area representing close to 60% of the yard area had been cleared of overburden and recorded.
A consequence of the first season of work was the collection and retention on site of a large collection of building material, including blackstone, bricks, cobblestones and floor tiles, which have potential for reuse in any future restoration or repair works to the structural elements of the ruin. Significantly a large collection of decorative architectural pieces and fragments including many elements of the building’s fa%ade (fluted pilasters, dressed freestone, decorative fragments) as well as many small ^finds’ were uncovered. The architectural fragments were ^stored’ in the yard following its decline into ruin, when pieces that had fallen off the building from the 1960s onwards were collected up and deposited in the East Yard. Small finds recovered have included 19th-and 20th-century pottery, glass, ironwork and butchered bone. This material helps to tell its own story of life in the former mansion, particularly through the fragments of plates bearing ^RAF 1942’.
Perhaps the most significant find from the 2009 work was the discovery of a carved stone head, which preliminary analysis has identified as being a Roman bust of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius or his son Commodus dating to the late 2nd century AD. The Earl Bishop was of course famed for his travelling and collecting and documentary evidence supports the story that he had purchased many antique statues in Italy along with other artworks to decorate his home.
A second season of excavation is planned in 2010 to complete the clearance and recording work within the East Yard and then works in the West Yard will begin where there are remains of a domestic gasworks from the mid-to late 19th century. The project at Downhill is being run with the financial support of the Trust’s North Coast Members Association. The excavations are open to public attendance and participation.