Archaeology Review - Autumn 2008

In March we returned to 16 New Street when demolition and excavation for the rear extension of the back yard was taking place for a "watching brief". More large granite boulders were found which were the foundations of walls previously recorded. A few artefacts of pottery were collected from the trenches but the "well" suspected was not found. In the future we may be able to excavate in the front garden which would be nearer to a medieval track.

In April we had an interesting talk at Pier Road by Dr Gilly Carr from Cambridge University who is studying "Trench Art". She talked about the artefacts created during Military Occupation, Imprisonment and Deportation with special relation to the Channel Islands. This was followed in May by a talk by John Pinel detailing the States Environment Department proposals for a Management Plan for Le Câtel de Lecq and adjacent fields.

After the equinoctial storms we visited La Motte to assess the damage suffered by erosion. Some loss of vegetation had occurred which might lead to further damage but generally the protective walls have done their job well. The Section intends to continue monitoring the condition and reporting to the Executive Committee.

Work started on the replacement of the Crittal windows in the workrooms at La Hougue Bie on the 13th May and since then the Section has held meetings out of doors in spite of some inclement weather. The building work is now finished and together with the Geology Section we are now able to make better use of the space.

Lavoir at St Cyr; Photo: John Clarke

Our first summer visit was to climb Le Câtel de Lecq following John Pinel's talk and discover the remains of a searchlight post that was powered by electricity produced by the watermill in the valley. Contemporary reports said that an iron wheel was brought to Jersey from Cologne in Germany! The precipitous descent brought us to Le Câtel Fort and a spectacular sunset. Visits were made during the longer evenings to Mont Ubé, La Bérgerie, Faldouet, Grantez and St Cyr. La Hougue des Platons was visited twice in an attempt to eliminate the gorse without damaging the monument.

The Lavoir research is continuing and the whole Section spent one meeting exposing a completely overgrown lavoir/abreuvoir near La Fontaine D'Auvergne at Grantez. It has suffered damage by traffic and lost some of its masonry but is still recognizable. The lavoir study group are still meeting on Wednesday mornings preparing to publish a comprehensive report.

Inquiries about Le Petit Moulin du Prieur de L'Islet du St Hélier led us to examine a building near the outlet of St Lawrence Valley that had recently been used as a garage. Investigation suggested that it had had several industrial uses but there was no indication of a medieval watermill in spite of the location. At the instigation of the Seigneur of Samarès a Desk Based Study of the 17th century canal and lodge houses at the western end of the property was carried out. This is expected to result in a resistivity survey and perhaps a watching brief will follow.

A great amount of research has been done by Dr Ralph Nichols to produce a Desk Base Assessment (DBA) of the area of a standing stone at the western end of the La Moye Golf Course. This has been necessary for an Application to the Planning Department for Permission to investigate by excavation. We hope to be able to carry this out in the near future with the co-operation of the Golf Club.

The National Trust for Jersey has made an excellent presentation of the Industrial Archaeology at Tesson Mill with a ceremony on 25th July and explanation by our former Chairman and Vice-Chairman, Chris Aubin, who led the excavations over many years. The site was open to the public on Heritage Day, 13th September 2008 and the public showed great interest in the archaeology.

The La Hougue Bie medieval Chapel is still the subject of concern but the extent of the work is still undecided so will occupy our attention now that the workroom is returned to use. Further consideration of the options is necessary before any work can start.

The Annual Bulletin for 2007 is now available to collect at the Pier Road office. The Archaeology Report unfortunately includes a photograph purporting to be of a cannon found in a recent dig but the observant may notice it was a picture used in another recent publication. The error, although no fault of the Archaeology Section, is regretted. The cannon found in 2006 appears in the accompanying photograph.

18th century cannon found on the old JMT bus garage site excavated in January 2006. It had a length of 92 cms, a barrel diameter of 14 cms and a bore of 5 cms. Photo: Neil Mahrer

In a summer when there was no major excavation, the Section still had a busy agenda of ongoing work. We shall continue to meet every Thursday and our activities will be announced on the Notice Board at 7 Pier Road. All Société Members are advised to read it and are invited to come to the Meetings.

John Clarke – Chairman