Document record MAB51029 - 107-147 HIGH STREET, ELGIN
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Summary
Evaluation in 1987 and excavation in 1988 was carried out by SUAT ahead of development of a shopping centre within the core of the Medieval burgh and market.
Protected Status/Designation
- None recorded
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred NJ 2157 6290 (115m by 93m) Centred at - Polygon: Known Event Extent |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | NJ26SW |
| Authority | Moray |
| Civil Parish | Elgin |
Type and Period (6)
- MARKET (12th Century to 19th Century - 1100 AD to 1899 AD)
- WELL (12th Century to 19th Century - 1100 AD to 1899 AD)
- BUILDING (12th Century to 19th Century - 1100 AD to 1899 AD)
- PIT (12th Century to 19th Century - 1100 AD to 1899 AD)
- WALL (12th Century to 19th Century - 1100 AD to 1899 AD)
- BURGH (12th Century to 19th Century - 1100 AD to 1899 AD)
Full Description
Evaluation in 1987 and excavation in 1988 was carried out by SUAT ahead of development of a shopping centre within the core of the Medieval burgh and market. A trial excavation in December 1987 identified two sites for the 1988 excavation, at 115 and at 121 High Street. Excavation at 115 High Street (20m north of the frontage) revealed an interesting sequence of occupation comprising pits and the posthole of an early structure containing 12th century pottery. This structure had been overlaid in the 14th century by a building consisting of a clay-bonded stone wall. This building had gone out of use and was succeeded in the 17th century by a stone building with a floor of clay bricks. This building had been demolished and the area used for a large cess pit on the 19th century. At 121 High Street (40m north of the frontage) pits were found cut into the natural sand. One was square and lined with clay-bonded walls: it contained 12th century pottery. Another series of pits and post holes related to activities in the back and of this High Street property dating from the 17th century. A sequence of property boundaries in both stone and timber was also discovered as well as a well on the west side of the area. This work indicates that in some places archaeological deposits of considerable importance do survive much closer to the High Street frontage than had previously been supposed. Finds of pottery, wood fragments, leather offcuts and other objects were recovered during the excavation.
Period Notes
Referred to as burgh in 1150 by King David I; Pope Honorarius granted permission to move cathedral in 1225; visited by King Edward I in 1296; original dwellings of single storey thatch cottages replaced from 17thC onwards; old tollbooth and parish church fell to 19thC improvements; town declined in late 18thC; 1820-1840 Elgin transformed into stately neo-classical town.
Author unknown, , PRESS & JOURNAL, 31/08/1988 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1416.
SUAT, 1988, ARCHAEOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS OF PROPOSED SHOPPING CENTRE DEVELOPMENT AT 107/147 HIGH STREET, ELGIN, REPORT (Bibliographic reference). SAB4837.
HALL, D. W., 1988, EXCAVATIONS AT HIGH ST, ELGIN: INTERIM REPORT, report (Bibliographic reference). SAB2737.
Excavation
CSA, 1989, DISCOVERY AND EXCAVATION IN SCOTLAND 1989, p.24 (Bibliographic reference). SAB5326.
GRAMPIAN REGIONAL COUNCIL, 1990, ST GILES CENTRE, ELGIN: SUMMARY OF FINAL COMMITTEE REPORT ON ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION (Bibliographic reference). SAB2621.
SUAT, 1994, ELGIN BURGH SURVEY: ARCHAEOLOGICAL UPDATE (Bibliographic reference). SAB4738.
HALL, DW, 1998, THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF ELGIN: EXCAVATIONS ON LADYHILL AND IN THE HIGH STREET, & OVERVIEW OF THE BURGH . IN PSAS 128, 753-829 (Bibliographic reference). SAB5867.
Feb 16 1988 , HB 1-3, HB 1-3 (Ground Photograph). SAB33537.
Author unknown, n.d., THE NORTHERN SCOT, 11/03/88 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1270.
Author unknown, n.d., THE NORTHERN SCOT, 19/02/88 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1270.
Other Statuses/References
- Authority: MOR;
- NMR Card Number: NJ26SW360;
- NRHE Numlink: 195323;
- Old Historic Environment Record Ref: NJ26SW0060;
External Links (1)
- https://www.trove.scot/place/195323 (trove.scot link)
Sources/Archives (10)
- --- SAB1270 Bibliographic reference: Author unknown. n.d.. THE NORTHERN SCOT. 11/03/88.
- --- SAB1270 Bibliographic reference: Author unknown. n.d.. THE NORTHERN SCOT. 19/02/88.
- --- SAB1416 Bibliographic reference: Author unknown. . PRESS & JOURNAL. 31/08/1988.
- --- SAB2621 Bibliographic reference: GRAMPIAN REGIONAL COUNCIL. 1990. ST GILES CENTRE, ELGIN: SUMMARY OF FINAL COMMITTEE REPORT ON ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION.
- --- SAB2737 Bibliographic reference: HALL, D. W.. 1988. EXCAVATIONS AT HIGH ST, ELGIN: INTERIM REPORT. N. N. report.
- --- SAB33537 Ground Photograph: Feb 16 1988 . HB 1-3. Black & White. HB 1-3.
- --- SAB4738 Bibliographic reference: SUAT. 1994. ELGIN BURGH SURVEY: ARCHAEOLOGICAL UPDATE.
- --- SAB4837 Bibliographic reference: SUAT. 1988. ARCHAEOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS OF PROPOSED SHOPPING CENTRE DEVELOPMENT AT 107/147 HIGH STREET, ELGIN. REPORT.
- --- SAB5326 Bibliographic reference: CSA. 1989. DISCOVERY AND EXCAVATION IN SCOTLAND 1989. p.24.
- --- SAB5867 Bibliographic reference: HALL, DW. 1998. THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF ELGIN: EXCAVATIONS ON LADYHILL AND IN THE HIGH STREET, & OVERVIEW OF THE BURGH . IN PSAS 128, 753-829. Y.
Finds (3)
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Events/Activities (4)
- Event - Intervention: ARCHAEOLOGICAL INTERVENTION - 107-147 HIGH STREET, ELGIN (EAB19997)
- Event - Intervention: Evaluation - 107-147 HIGH STREET, ELGIN (EAB3404)
- Event - Intervention: Excavation - 107-147 HIGH STREET, ELGIN (EAB14389)
- Event - Intervention: Excavation - 107-147 HIGH STREET, ELGIN (EAB3405)
Record last edited
Aug 19 2024 3:03PM
